Miranos
by Ink-and-Blink
Summary: I had to traverse half the galaxy and threaten to maim and injure many people for their story. The Adventures of Taz and Up. Rated T to M. Enjoy!
1. Up

The squealing of machines and the roar of their oil spewing motors filled his ears. The screaming of hydraulic breaks and the smell of burnt rubber was all that he could sense. With a sudden burst of energy he managed to throw his weight into the robot attacking him, he gripped the edge of a broken beam and swung his boot into the robot, impaling it on the other half of the broken beam. Up allowed himself to fall into the carnage that lay underfoot, a mix of human and robot entrails, and rested for a few precious moments. The carnage that lay before him was nothing new; weakly, he struggled out of the pile of smoking robots and human remains. The impaled robot was still functioning, Up dug around for a zapper, found one off a dead comrade and used it to kill the robot. The overpowering stench of the battlefield made him sneeze. He grimly looked over his battlefield, cursing silently, where did those goddamned autobots retreat to? With difficulty, he slid down the pile of broken robots he had managed to defeat. It looked like the main battalion had given him up for dead. He furrowed his forehead, where could they have headed? There were no big cities nearby... His crackling radio brought his attention to the mission he had probably failed.

"Shit!" angrily he spat on the ground, trying to get the taste of motor oil and copper wires out of his mouth before answering, "Lieutenant Up. Out." There was a moment of static then," UP!" the voice at the other end screeched, "You're alive!" He held the radio away from his face, grimacing, "The only one alive. The rest of my squad was... murdered. Or in pursuit of the autobots."

Shakily, the voice on the other side responded," Well, the good news is that someone from your squad managed to place a tracer on the autobot leading the main attack. Your squad managed to decimate more than two-thirds of the original group. The Commander wants you to head back to base. There's nothing more you can do Lieutenant."

"Got it," heavily, Lieutenant Up turned back, snagging the discarded zapper from the ground again. He should have been exhausted, he probably had several broken ribs and a fractured leg but with the adrenaline pumping through him, all he could discern from his surroundings was the blood and motor oil mixing at his soles as he started his trek back to base.

Up propped himself against half a wall and tried to figure out where he was headed. The standard issue tracker was still functional according to the static pinch he felt when he touched the nape of his neck. GLEE would hopefully send someone out to retrieve him…

Ten minutes later he began seeing medics converging on the battlefield behind him. Some offered to help him but he waved the green-swathed doctors away. With a sigh of relief he spied a dark blue and chrome jeep in the distance, bumper shining and rims spinning, the driver was a clean-cut ensign whose uniform didn't sport a single dead Goddamned wrinkle. The relief of being retrieved evaporated at the sight of the baby-faced ensign, he silently clambered into the back, refusing to look at the boy. He was too well-fed, too cheery.

"Damn sir! Your leg bone is sticking out!" The ensign twisted around in his seat.

"Shut up ensign and drive," drawled Up, before pulling his bandana low over his eyes. The ensign reddened and roughly spun the jeep towards base, zigzagging around pot holes and trees and demolished buildings, careful of the medics and their patients. Up clung to the back seat, with the adrenaline wearing off he didn't dare look at his leg; didn't dare to look at himself at all. The ensign however, wasn't as worried and he openly gawped at the lieutenant through the rear-view mirror.

The Lieutenant's left shin bone was shattered and had ripped the skin open, his chest was oddly bumpy and there was a huge gash on the side of his neck, his hands were torn to shreds, nails hung off strands of skin and several fingers were clearly dislocated. When they arrived at base, which was a collection of low slung metal and wood buildings placed in neat rows, Up jumped from the jeep and began walking to Commander's building.

"Um, Lieutenant Up?" the ensign nervously approached him from behind.

"What?" growled Up, not slowing down.

"You are _supposed_ to report to the medical building first. Uh, sir."

He stopped and almost laughed at himself, Up had completely forgotten about his injuries. "Right." he did a right turn and limped towards the squat building with the bright green crescent moon splashed across all of its doors and roof.

Up stepped into the smell of antiseptic with undertones of blood, there were a few patients inside and quite a large number of staff lounging around.

"Lieutenant!" a lanky man angrily shouted at him as soon as he stepped foot inside the hospital, "What the hell do you think you're doing?!" Up shrugged and went to sit on one of the hospital beds, "I thought I'd come in and get patched before I went to report on today's mission." The medic angrily retrieved a metal trolley from the edge of the large ground floor room and threw supplies onto it before loping over to Up. He called out to some nurses to come and help him. "I meant, what the fuck do you think you're doing walking around with half of your bone exposed?" Up opened his mouth but was interrupted by the same medic, "Don't answer that! Just zip-it and don't move." Amused, Up leaned back into the soft hospital pillow and let a tiny smile float across his face before grimacing at the needle that pinched his thigh. He braved a glance at his leg, his pant-leg had been cut away, he immediately regretted seeing his own bone. "At least it was a clean break, you're a lucky sonovabitch. "

"Thanks for not being an asshole, Mac," Up rolled his eyes towards the ceiling before closing them again.

"Shit."

"What?"

Up tried to sit up but Mac pushed him back down, "I'm gonna give you local anesthesia so you'll feel completely numb but still be awake. Think you can handle the sound of crunchy bones and me moving your muscles around?"

Up grimaced," I lost my entire team today. I heard too many bones give-way before _their_ metal. I think I can handle a few more, especially if they're mine." Silently, Mac injected him with a cocktail mix, and Up was in a stupor, day dreaming about the sounds and smells he had tolerated that day and would probably not let him have a peaceful dinner.

The blaring sirens woke him, groggily he sat up, the pain from two days ago now subsided to dull aches that he ignored. His roommates woke up as well, yawning and rubbing their eyes. Their small grey room was sparse and the ceiling was dented from people punching the roof or banging their heads on the metal sheeting.

"Wha's goin' on Up?" Asked one yawning woman.

"No idea. I'll go check," he pulled on some pants and stepped out into the hallway, which was awash in blue light. A hard-faced man trotted past and Up stepped out, saluting him," Commander Pryce? What's goin' on?" The Commander scowled, "Ensigns decided to go for a midnight jaunt in the humvees and they stumbled upon a horde of chef-bots. It's carnage out there. Get back to bed Up, there's hardly anything we can do for them. A crack team's already been dispatched anyway." Up shuddered, at first the chef-bots had been amusing and useful. But once the uprising began and Astroboy had broken from his cell, the once friendly chef bots turned their machetes and serrated knives on their customers. "Well, I would like to help at least as a guide back, if any lucky ensign hasn't been flambeaued yet. "

Commander Pryce nodded, "That would be appreciated. Report to the front gates, I'll see you there." Up saluted his Commander and ran back into the room, "C'mon!"

There were groans, "They're just ensigns Up! They don't matter, why're you gonna risk your neck for their stupid asses?" Up glared at Isa, who had complained, she was a lieutenant as well but in the R&D department, she specialized in communications. "It doesn't matter, they're part of this base. I'm going, if anyone of you _wusses_ want to join me, go to the front gates." Straightening his combat jacket and zapper sling, Up left the room. Truth be told, he didn't feel any remorse for the slain ensigns, they should have been more careful. But it was easier to face real robots than the ghost ones that appeared in dreams.

Within twenty minutes of talking with Commander Pryce, Up was seated in a dark brown and grey humvee that was outfitted with a gunner's turret and was halfway to where the ensigns had been ambushed. The Commander himself was seated next to him and carrying a strange zapper. Up eyed the red zapper, tiny flames engraved on the grip and muzzle as they bounced over dirt roads. The ensigns and lieutenants seated in the back were also curious about the strange flame-zapper. Finally, Isa broke the silence, "Sir? What in dead God's name is _that?"_

Displaying a toothy grin, Pryce hefted it into the air. Up kept his eyes on the road, following the dull red flames that signaled where the foolish-ensigns were currently being torn to pieces. "_This_ is the newest way to kick metal-ass. It's a prototype of a regular zapper, _plus_ it shoots hollow-point bullets coated with a gel that ignites upon pulling the trigger. Melts and kills any type of armor, skin, chitin, even metal. It's call-"

"We're almost there, sir."

A gawky ensign with tightly curled hair and coke-bottle glasses piped up from the navigator's seat.

Pryce looked mildly annoyed but continued on, "It's called the Precision Explosive Weapon. Soon it won't be a prototype or even a separate zapper! It'll be a setting for _all_ standard issued GLEE zappers."

Up brought the humvee to a screeching halt, throwing everyone against their seatbelts, "We're here." Pryce unbuckled himself from the seat.

"Yes, lieutenant, I can see that," responded Pryce dryly," Alright you roughnecks! Go out there and do your dead Goddamned job!"

Up leapt out roaring a "YESSIR!" along with the rest of the retrieval squad. He liked the idea of that flame zapper, he hoped to have one someday.

They all fell into line, Up was near the back, instructed to protect the navigator and communications ensigns as well as participate in the rescue mission. They swiftly ran across a stand of lonely trees; on the other side were about a score of robots killing and pulling apart a terrified group of unarmed teenagers. On the commander's signal, five of the Rangers burst from the trees, spraying the robots with holes. Three seconds later, the commander with the last five ensigns and two lieutenants sprinted after them, killing even more robots. Up rushed the battlefield, roaring murder and rage.

He sprinted past his Commander and tackled the first robot he encountered, shooting it twice before rolling away and head-butting with an Easy Bake oven-bot. The giant robot pinned him to the ground, smashing his face next to the semitransparent oven door. With a yelp, Up realized that there was an ensign _inside_ the oven-bot, slowly roasting. He wiggled out from the oven-bot, trying to shoot it in the face. The oven-bot scrambled back, several bullet holes in its torso. He pulled out a knife and threw it at the pink robot, pinning one of its many arms to the ground. With a grinding sound, Up managed to straddle it and rip out its central power cable. A shower of hot cooking oil hit Up in the chest, melting his jacket to his skin, he yelled in pain, rolling into the ground and ripping his jacket off. He began shoveling mud onto his burning skin when a dull knocking came from the inside of the dead oven-bot. _The Ensign!_ Up pulled the slightly charred but very much alive ensign from the oven-bot's entrails. "Th-thank-" Up pushed him away, he didn't have time, "That way," he growled, pointing to the stand of trees where the navigator and Isa were currently hiding from the main fight. Up heaved the Easy Bake oven-bot over and used it as a shield whilst he shot at the remaining robots. Ten minutes later there were only about 10 left and Up was in his element. He'd taken out three more oven-bots and one party-bot, a gruesome animatron clown that use to do tricks for children's parties before the war. Crouching behind a robot corpse, he spotted three party-bots fleeing from the battlefield. He gave chase, aiming his zapper at their central cores. "Aaaagh!" A giant machete sliced into his thigh, Up rolled to the floor, managing to wedge the machete in deeper. A party-bot with a blue and pink cheshire's grin held out two more machetes, slowly swinging them around. Up rolled to his feet, aiming at the party bot's head, too late. He managed to avoid the first machete with barely a nick to his knees but the second machete caught him directly in the belly, "Oof!" Up flew onto his back.

Convinced that he was going to spill his guts like pudding, Up didn't dare move an inch. He lay there for a full ten seconds, imagining his intestines falling out in pink and red coils.

"WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING, UP? Move your ass!" Commander Pryce ran to him and jerked Up to his feet by the scruff of his neck. Up looked down and saw the machete fall away, the handle glinting with his charred skin and cooking oil, the blade clean and untouched. Realizing how lucky he'd been, Up nodded sheepishly at Pryce and followed him towards the rogue party-bots. The trail led past the battlefield, across several cornfields and towards a valley. They had lost the robots and Pryce was furious. He spat into his radio, "There are villages around here! You need to find them NOW. Do you understand that Ensign Byte?" There was no response from the other side of the radio. "Lieutenant Vasili!" A dark-skinned and muscular woman turned towards the Commander, "Sir!" "You, Up and I will go and scout the next city. That's probably where the robots headed, it would be easy to hide there. The rest of you go back and find out what happened to the navigator, and the Comm. Go!"

Lieutenant Vasili led their troupe of three while Pryce attempted to communicate with Ensign Byte and Up kept an eye out behind them. They traipsed up a steep hill that sported several scorch marks, "Oh my dead God..."

Vasili reached the top of the hill first and stopped to cover her mouth with the heel of her hand. Pryce lowered the radio and stared in horror at the scene below him. Up stood below them and slowly walked to the top of the hill. His blood ran cold to his belly and he almost dropped his zapper. The scene below him was a nightmare come to life.

The city was lit from the inside, like a jack-o-lantern on Halloween, the night sky making the flames more beautiful and terrible than possible. Without a word all three scrambled down the steep hill and split up to look for survivors. Up pulled out a dirty red bandana and tied it around his mouth to keep from breathing in the smoke. He pulled his grey bandana low over his eyes and headed off to circle the perimeter of the town, Vasili cut down the middle and Pryce circled the other way around.


	2. Taz

Edited: 03/29

~o0o~

He knew there would be no one left, there _shouldn't_ be anyone left. Robots never had mercy with any human, the charred bodies with twisted expressions lining the streets were a testament to that. Children with missing limbs lay in his path and Up was hard-pressed not to turn around and head down a different street. His leg was burning but the destroyed town held his attention and the pain crawling up his leg became background noise. He walked slowly, making sure to listen for calls of help or approaching robots. He stopped in front of a small shop, a broken sign declared it to be a _Panaderia, were there voices nearby? Yes, definitely_. He could hear the artificial robotic laughter from somewhere nearby and the screamings of someone being tortured.

He spun slowly, eyes closed, straining his ears to catch the tinny human voice that needed him. _There!_ He turned towards the center of the town and sprinted down the blood smeared streets. "_Acercate pedazo de mierda! Dejame bajar! Aver que tan valientes son!"_ Up ducked into a tall gold-colored building, it was relatively undamaged, except for the people lying in heaps of limbs and torsos near the edges. _Had there been a party?_ Everyone was in their best threads. The furious screaming and robotic laughter continued on, deeper into the shadowy building. Sparks leapt from circuitry exposed in the walls and Up was careful to skirt those, he peered around the blasted and crumbling edge of a decorated wall.

There was food thrown everywhere in the airy ballroom, a giant blue and green cake lay up-turned near one corner of the room and about a hundred people decked out in all of their finery lay dead in piles. There were about three dead robots neatly lined up by the door where Up stood, but about half a dozen more stood in the center of the room where... Up's jaw dropped. There was _girl_ strung up by her waist to the ceiling. He charged into the room, bellowing like a mad bull.

"Get back here, _mija!"_Her mother held out the hairspray threateningly, "_Andale, _or I'll spray jou in de eyes. Tazzie..." Taz huffed over to her mother and plumped herself onto the bed. Her heavy skirts making it hard to walk. "_Mami_, do jou still love me even though I'm not girly like Rubi?" Her mother smiled and wrapped an arm around her daughters shoulders, "_Ay, _I would love jou even if jou were _una muchacha muy brava._ I will love jou until de stars wink out." Taz stood and hugged her tightly," I was hoping jou'd say that."

Her mother pulled away from the hug and looked at her daughter's face, a couple of inches below her own eyes, "_Pinchi_," she said fondly, "I am jour _mama_. Jou are silly for thinking that I wouldn't love jou."

Taz chuckled, " And _papa_ always wonders where I get my swears from."

"And if you ever tell him, I'll chase you with the hot curling iron!" her mother charged at her, waving the steaming curling iron it in front of Taz's face. Taz laughed and backed up, holding her hands out in surrender, "Okay, okay! _MAMA!_"

She screeched, backing into the bed and falling. Loud rumbling interrupted their banter. Taz sat up and her mother rushed to the window, peering out of the two story yellow house onto thebusy street. Taz's mother pursed her lips and squinted at the sky, "Taz..."

" _Si_ _mama?"_

"Go tell jour father to look at de weather report for today, We'll be inside, but maybe de guests need _paraguas_."

"_Si mama."_ Taz stood and holding her skirts above the floor trotted downstairs. Humming, Taz happily skipped through the kitchen, her midnight blue quinceanera dress trailing the floor. Carefully she patted her curled hair, she was happy to have a party and dance the night away but the idea of having everyone's eyes on her the whole time made worms crawl in her belly. Yech. She practiced a few steps in the living room, gracefully twirling, already imagining the colorful lights sweeping the floor and her _familia_ surrounding her, happy and drunk off cold _Tecate. _She couldn't wait to cut into the cake, delicious fruity cake. She kicked the back door open with her toe, "Papaaaaaa." She bawled out into the backyard, "_APAAAAAA!" _A tall and dark man stuck his head out of a tool shed, his mustache twitching, "Jou sound like _un becerro,_ a baby cow, _mi pequeno sol_." Taz laughed and beckoned her father for a hug.

Taz's mother gazed out of the window when Taz left, she fervently hoped that the Starship Rangers would keep the small city safe, today especially, for her daughter. Preoccupied, she picked up a rosario from the nightstand and ran the beads through her hands. The worn ceramic a comfort to her. Her family had already lost Rosa, Emilia and Dead God knew if Enrique was alive. His Starship, the _Brava_ had not been seen in a year and a half.

Taz had left her _papa_ and was now aimlessly walking through her house. She ambled into her papa's study and sat in the big leather chair, humming the vals she'd have to dance with her papa, " _Hoy le compre a mi hija el ultimo juguete... ya crecio..." _She trailed off when she spotted the hefty serrated Ranger knife in the glass case. Her papa use to be a Commander but retired as soon as he could to marry and settle down with Taz's mom. Quickly Taz lifted the knife from its pedestal, the blade was as twice as long as her palm and the wooden handle shone darkly. Taz rummaged through her dad's cabinets until she found the sling that went with the knife. She lifted up her dress and strapped the knife to her thigh admiring how the heft of it made her feel safe. Smirking, Taz stomped around, hitching up her dress and pretending to be an undercover Ranger on a mission to save civilians. Laughing, she skipped out of the room to show her mother.

Up rushed the room, tearing the robots apart and shooting those far enough. He was thrown to the ground by a couple of Octobots; he reached into their unprotected arm-joints and ripped out their tentacle arms. He used the tentacles as whips, tripping up more robots and then shooting them in the face. The girl had been screaming in unearthly tones, but when she spotted Up she stopped her racket and procured a knife from her skirts. She aimed the knife at the rope encircling her waist, furiously, she hacked at the rope until she fell ten feet to the floor. Up heard her land and roll in a tight ball. He rushed to her side and slung her over his shoulder.

Screaming hysterically, she pummeled his back and kicked his chest. Up winced; how was someone so tiny, so furious? "Calm down girl!" he yelled, still shooting at the four remaining robots. The girl twisted around and tried to wiggle out of Up's grip, "Let me down! _Jodido de la puta madre! Esos pinches robots mataron a-" _The girl began sobbing, she slipped from Up's grip and he tightened his hold on her, her weight pressing painfully on his chest wound. She was now clinging to his neck, he could feel her tears, wetting his undershirt.

Up was bewildered at her sudden mood-swing, he simply stood there, shooting down the remaining robots while a short girl in a large blue dress clung to his neck and bawled out her fury.

He ran out of the ballroom as soon as the last robot dropped, keeping his zapper at the ready. He met Lt. Vasili and Commander Pryce at the rendezvous place, out of breath and a little bewildered.

"Where the hell have you been Up?" Vasili rushed forward, only pulling short when she saw the poufy, bloody, blue bundle clinging to Up's neck. "What's _that _thing_?"_

"She's –" Up began but was interrupted by the girl jumping down. She was a sight; the large midnight blue dress was drenched in blood and shredded. One of her eyes was swollen shut, her cheek purpling beautifully, her hair was burnt and matted with blood. A large gash at her forehead was bleeding profusely and it stained her face a dark shade of red, " _I_ am a woman jou piece of shit!"

Furious, Vasili jumped forward, hand raised.

Up snatched the girl from harm's way, "For dead God's sake Vasili! She's just been through hell, leave her alone!" Looking injured, Vasili snapped, "And well, what does _she_ matter? She's not even a citizen! Just a dead goddamned useless harlot. Should'a left her where you found her."

The girl in his grip shuddered, and Up was filled with an inexplicable rage. He'd just watched this small girl fight for her life like a tigerdillo while her family lay freshly-dead underneath her.

Up snapped.

Snarling, he rounded on his friend, "What the FUCK is wrong with you?"

Vasili and even Pryce stepped back. "This girl just watched her family get MURDERED and the people who are supposed to protect, her attack her for being a victim. WELL FUCK YOU!" Up took the girl's elbow in his grip and dragged her down the hill, towards the humvee waiting for them.

"Wait!"

Up stopped and looked behind him, the girl was trailing him by several feet, the dress weighing her down. She stopped and pulled out her knife, Up stepped back, uncertain of what she was going to do. The glint in her eyes was dangerous and he didn't want to be near her with the large serrated knife, which was about as long as his palm. She bent over and began sawing the dress off, Taz wished the man would turn away but she didn't want to speak with him. Silently, she stepped away from the blue dress, black and ugly at her feet. Taz was glad for the blue She did camisole and lycra shorts she wore, but she still felt exposed. Embarrassed, she strapped the knife back to her thigh, "What jou lookin' at? Creep."

Without a word he stomped on, they stumbled through a thicket of trees and Taz could see what looked like the remains of a fierce battle. Discreetly she glanced at the man, Up, that walked in front of her. He had dark hair that was silvering near his nape and ears although it was hard to be sure in the low light. He was smeared in mud, blood and motor oil. She glanced back for a moment and a hot, thorny knot formed in her throat at the thought of what lay behind her. This starship Ranger was as useless as Enrique. Taz's brother should've been here today, he could've protected them, but he'd gotten himself lost, his ship MIA. Taz bit her tongue in frustration, _NO!_ _I will not cry! _With a silent growl she gritted her teeth, the day had torn her world apart but she couldn't, _she wouldn't let that break her_. Looking at the man leading her way, _I bet nothing hurts him. I puked when I saw the kids in the street but he didn't even blink._ She decided to harden into something that the world would not break, and with every step she took, the old Taz slipped away.

The girl who appreciated green trees and lazy Sundays quickly dissolved, absorbed by the silent May night. Taz looked back one last time, but she couldn't see her home anymore, just a dark patch of trees and the hill.

By the time they reached the GLEE humvee, Up had almost forgotten about the girl trailing him, he looked back and almost jumped out of his combat boots. The girl he had slung over his shoulder was gone, there was now a solid wall of freezing anger standing behind him. Up felt pity for her, first her family was stolen from her and now she seemed to think that being angry would solve everything. The robots took more than lives, they took _people_ and turned them into the cold facsimiles of themselves. He sincerely hoped she would snap out of it, there had to be some nice adults at the refugee camp who'd help her. _Poor kid_.

~o0o~

Taz Translation (Taz'lation):

. "_Acercate pedazo de mierda! Dejame bajar! Aver que tan valientes son!"_**Come closer you piece of shit! Let me down! We'll see how brave you are then!"**

_una muchacha muy brava_ **A very manly and untraditional girl / brave/ a fighter**

" _Hoy le compre a mi hija el ultimo juguete... ya crecio..."_**This is another very traditional quinceanera song, but this one is ONLY danced with the father; it says - Today I bought my daughter her last doll... She's already grown...**


	3. Knife and Trust

~o0o~

Commander Pryce found Up and the girl standing to the side of the humvee with a shame-faced Lt. Isa sitting in the back seat. Two more humvees had arrived to transport all of the rescued ensigns back to base. The ensigns looked exhausted and beaten within an inch of their lives. Commander Pryce raised an eyebrow at Lt. Isa but she ducked her head and he decided to deal with her later. He didn't think Up would appreciate him screaming at a Lieutenant in front of the girl. Pryce ordered them all to head back; gratefully everyone obeyed order and dragged themselves into a humvee.

Up pushed the girl into the shot gun seat of one humvee and buckled her in. When he clambered into the driver's seat and gunned the car he noticed everyone staring at him, "What?" he growled. "Why's there a chit in the front seat?" asked Isa, she had hopped into the back seat, but now leaned forward to look at Taz," It's nice to meet'cha doll, but you should be sitting in the back, it's safer." Taz looked at Up who refused to look at either of them and instead stared at the humvee that was in front of them. Taz shrugged and clambered into the back while Isa slithered to the front. Isa twisted around in her seat and made sure to buckle Taz in securely,"Now if we're hit with an IED you won't get _totally_ blasted to smithereens." Taz cracked a tight smile. Isa turned back in her seat and whispered to Up, "I'm really good with kids."

Up followed Commander Pryce's humvee back to the base. Taz stared at everyone out of the corner of her eye. The sun was starting to rise now, orange ribbons were turning the trees yellow and green. There were three ensigns sitting in the back seat with her, one with tight curls and glasses; the other two were shell shocked and were so encrusted with mud and shit that Taz wasn't sure they were really human One in particular seemed to be handling the battle badly, he kept chattering and mumbling funny phrases.

They arrived at the base safely and everyone clambered out, stretching their muscles. The humvees were built for safety, not for comfort. Commander Pryce looked for the little girl, hoping to catch her expression when she got down from the humvee and saw her surroundings. People were usually impressed with his base, there was a green pond with a small river feeding into it. The low slung aluminum buildings were connected by dirt walkways hedged with small bushes and there were always birds in the trees . Pryce knew war was hell, so he decided to create a bit of a natural paradise in the eye of the storm for his men and women. But when the small girl jumped down she didn't bat an eye at the greenery, she didn't tilt her head to listen to the birds in the early morning chill. He frowned, but saluted everyone and gave them leave for the day.

Taz didn't really know what to do, she stood there until Up tapped her shoulder and awkwardly stuck his hand out," M'names Up. I'm a lieutenant." Taz shook his hand and didn't say anything. "I guess we should get you some more clothes huh?" Taz couldn't place his accent so she just nodded. Was it American? "I can help with that," Isa smiled and floated over to them, slinging an arm around Up's shoulders. Up shook his head, "You're _supposed_ to report to Pryce. You messed up this morning." Isa frowned, "Fine. But if I come back without a head you're to blame." She walked away whistling, hands in her pockets.

Up turned to the girl, "What's your name?"

"Taz."

Up scratched his head, " What kinda name's that? That isn't your real name is it? Come on." He began walking towards the buildings. Shaking her head, Taz followed, "No, 's a nickname. Is Up _jour_ real name?" Up smirked and regretted it, a throbbing pain trailed its hot fingers across his face.

"No, It isn't, so I see your point." He opened a door for her and bowed her inside. Taz scowled at him, not sure if her was making fun of her; she didn't like jokes or pranks. _Her mother often called her a sore loser_, Taz clenched her eyes shut and steered away from that train of thought. "Mac?" Up pushed past her, calling out into the empty hospital building. A thin man stuck his head out a curtained area.

"What?" He wore round glasses.

We need her bandaged and some new clothes for her. Mac approached them, scowling, he lead Taz to a bed and patted it so Taz would sit. With a _tut_, Mac lead Up away as he collected some bandages, "Why'd she here? Isn't there a refugee camp fifty klicks south? Do I look like I appreciate working for strays?" They approached Taz again and Up silenced the thin man with a glare.

"What happened?" He unrolled some crisp bandages and laid them out next to Taz.

"Some ensigns decided t' go explorin' for some treasure, they found 'bout 20 robots instead. The surviving robots destroyed her city." Mac raised an eyebrow and shook his head, he used his teeth to pull the cap off a needle and injected Taz with some blue stuff. Taz gripped the sides of the small hospital bed, remaining silent.

Mac spit out the cap of a small yellow tube into a trash can, "And who're you girl?" Taz remained silent, the injection had felt like ice and had turned into boiling lava, making her arm ache painfully. She made a face instead of responding.

Mac grinned, dimples forming on his face, "Charming. You really know how to pick 'em, Up." He guffawed and started binding Taz's cuts. He also slathered cream on her bruises and on her face and arms and neck. "This'll suck out any poison the 'bots might've hit you with."

Up suddenly felt his chest twinge with pain, "Uh, Mac?"

"Mmhmm?" He was carefully stitching Taz's leg and didn't turn around. Up carefully peeled his undershirt off and winced at his wounds. He sat down on the other side of the bed gingerly, Taz completely forgot the needle sowing her skin together when she turned to look at him.

Up turned to her and grinned, " Boilin' hot cooking oil. Gross innit?"

"_A la bestia_! What de hell happened?" Taz twisted around to get a good view of the mess mashed onto Up's chest.

"Dead Lord have mercy, it speaks!" Mac chuckled at his own joke, but was repaid with kick in the chest. "Yowch! Horrid child!" Mac fell back, landing on his backside and coughing to get his breath back. Up smiled and shook his head, "When you're done being a complete asshole to her I need you to scrape robot oil off me." Mac stood and nodded respectfully at Taz, "That was a good kick, You can come back here anytime for a sparring match with me. Or when you're hurt and need patching." Mac turned and when he caught sight of Up's torso he ran his hands through his hair and slowly shook his head, "Up..." he paused," I don't think that shits gonna come off unless we _melt_ it offa you. Look at it, you look like a dead Goddamned Play-doh monster."

Taz stared at them, wide-eyed. Up nodded slowly, "Do it."

"Seriously?" A gleam like madness appeared in Mac's eyes, it made Taz nervous.

Up nodded, "Do what you have to, Mac."

Mac pushed his hair away from his forehead and patted Taz's head so she'd get off the bed. "I have to warn you, there aren't any other medics on call. I'm lone-wolf for the night. It'll be difficult-"

"I can't go around like this!" Up angrily gestured at himself.

"Oookay, let me cobble together something to do this, Dead God."

Up leaned back onto the pillows and finally took a proper look at Taz. She was short barely reaching his shoulders, her hair was a tangled, wavy mess. She faced away from him, staring wide-eyed at Mac's retreating back. He could see the line of her jaw curve gracefully and pool into her shoulders, but right now everything tense and tight. She was frightened, or nervous. Probably scared out of her wits. Though she was small, Up couldn't deny the utterly terrifying ferocity that poured from her stance. Even just standing there, she was ready to whip her knife out and stab someone, anyone. She turned around to say something to him but he didn't really process what she said, her eyes were too dark.

"Ow!" Up rubbed his calf, "What's yer problem?!" She was as annoying as a gnat.

"Jou had a stupid dream-look on jour face. It was annoying me. And jou ignored my question."

"Which was?" Up tried peeling some bits of fabric from his chest.

"Stop that," snapped Taz," I asked 'What happened?'"

"Where?"

She sighed, irritated. Up decided they were small bits of red earth, her eyes were large and- "Jour chest, _estupido_! Are jou soft in de head, _ese_? Did those robots smack jou around one too many times?" Up scowled and kicked her off his bed. "Hey!" She whirled on him, knife out, teeth bared.

Up was irritated with her. She was too small to be filled with so much hate, he understood that her family was gone, but why couldn't she be just sad? Why did Taz choose hate? _Probably the same reason you did too._ Up shook the small voice off and tried to snatch the knife out of her grip. She whirled away with surprising speed. Up lunged over the bed, she slashed at him, grazing his arm. He kicked off his boots. "Pffft. If I was a robot jjjjou would jjjjhave been dead!" Up mocked her accent as he leapt over the bed, "Give over that knife, small-fry. Ya' don' even know how to hold it!" He stood before her, wearing a snarl, one hand straying to where his zapper would have been. " .Over."

"No! Jou will have to take it from my cold-dead hands jou bastard!" Taz was furious, who did this man think he was? She skipped back a few feet, sneering, "Jou think I don't know how to fight? _Vamos ese!_ Let's see how tough jou are!" She dropped to a fighting stance and held the knife at the ready. He lunged at her, punching the air around her head, not actually wanting to hurt her. She ducked and wove between his fists.

"Give it to me!" He used his reach to make wild lunges but she expertly ducked beneath his clumsy attempts.

"No!" Taz felt his knuckles brush her neck. She smacked his hand away with the flat of the knife, producing a flat ring from the metal.

She aimed a kick at him and he when he was off balance she tackled him. She let the knife drop and started punching his head, Up fell and crashed into the bed, right onto the floor. Recovering, Up rolled with her and managed to lock her hands to her sides, Taz bit his arms and managed to free one hand to hit him. But Up already had the upper hand and he used it, he pinned her to the ground, overpowering her through sheer weight. "Uhh... what are you doing Up?" Mac was standing there with a trolley full of odds and ends watching Up pin the half-naked girl to the ground.

"He tried to take my knife!" Taz spat into his face. Up loosened his grip to wipe the spittle away. Still angry, she punched him in the eye. Little spots of light danced a two-step in front of him. Taz scrambled away and scooped the precious knife back into her arms, looking as if she was about to cry.

"You're a menace with that," Up scrambled to his feet, embarrassed, "You just want to stab someone, anyone. It makes _me_nervous." The girl had a strong arm, his head was still spinning. Mac looked at Taz over the top of his glasses, curly brown hair falling into his face. "Tell ya' what Tazzie, m'darling dearest patient..."

She looked at Mac suspiciously, "What?"

"You can stay here and help me torture Up but you have to put that knife down, or you can leave and listen to Up's screams from outside."

Taz considered this for a moment, "I'll stay." She took the knife sling off and carefully placed it on the table by the hospital bed.

"Right. Now Up, get on the bed and don't be too loud. I promise to be gentle since it's your first time." Mac wiggled his eyebrows at Up and grinned mischievously.

"Zombified Christ," muttered Up, but he lay down on the bed. "Here, Taz," Mac handed her what looked like a fluted gun," This is a heat gun. You aim that at Up's chest and I'll scrape off the melted oil. But don't hold it too close of you'll just reboil the goop, and not too far away neither." Taz nodded, "Got it." "Whoa there!" cried Up, "I'm not letting her point any type of gun at me!" Mac pursed his lips.

"Don't you trust me?" Taz frowned at Up. Mac glared at Up, "There's no one else to help. You want this to go quickly or excrutiatingly slowly you numb-nuts?"

"I- well... don't mess me up too bad Taz." With a nervous twitch, Up lay back down.

"_No te preocupes._ I won't screw jou over._"_ She looked determined and held the fluted gun to her chest. Mac opened a package of sterile bandages, "Shit. I forgot the sunburn gel. I'll be right back." Mac loped away.

Taz and Up stared at one another. "Sorry I tried to take your knife. Is it your dad's?" Up smoothed down the bandages around his arm. Taz took a big breath, "It was my dad's first, but then he gave it to my oldest brother and dat brother gave it to de second oldest... and so on." Taz looked down at her feet, she was exhausted, she hadn't slept in what seemed like weeks. She felt a hand on her shoulder but refused to look at him. "Look at me, Taz." Up patted her shoulder and she raised her eyes. "I know that you're angry, but that's not going to get you anywhere," _just like it hasn't gotten you anywhere?_He ignored the voice in his head," You have to get the anger out and just _mourn_ your family," _hypocrite hissed the voice_, "Trust me. You can't fight with anger. You have to have something else to fight with. The hate's just a poison."

Taz refused to cry, "What do jou fight with, Up?"

Up considered this question seriously, "I've forgotten But it wasn't hate. Now I'm just really good at my job." Taz lowered her eyes and Up realized that might've the worst thing to say. They remained in uncomfortable silence until Mac came back; he unceremoniously slathered green goop on Up's chest and flicked on the heat-gun's power-source before handing it back to Taz.

Gingerly, Taz aimed the heat gun at the mess that was Up's chest and saw before her eyes the oil liquefy and begin to run down, "Quickly now," muttered Mac to himself. Deflty, the oily-wax-shitthing from Up's chest was scraped tapped it into a bowl. She was careful to avoid as much of Up's real skin as possible. They spent hours getting the oil off the lieutenant, Taz melting and Mac scraping; Up began to sweat half an hour into the ordeal and by the end of the first hour his face had turned beet red, his knuckles pale as curdled oatmeal.

He refused to scream in front of Taz, but Up gripped the sides of the bed so hard that the sheets began to rip and fray. Taz kept one eye on his face, noting that every time he moved or was touched by the silver scraper he grimaced and clenched his jaw into a tighter knot.

_Honestly,_ Up thought_, I should get a fucking award for not screaming_, every time the girl aimed the gun at him his insides writhed like scorpions with pain. Up counted slowly in his head, then he would lose his place, choose a new number and continue counting, he thought maybe five hours had passed, or ten. A month? He had no fucking clue. The lights over his bed began dancing in fantastic colors and he thought he spied a dragon in the corner, slicking it's hungry maw towards him….

"We're done!" Mac announced happily, "And a dead goddamned good job at that. You'll have minimal scarring since we just melted your skin to a normal-ish consistency. And the healing bandages should work wonders on you too. High five Taz!"

Taz just stared at Up. "Orrr, not..." Mac took a wooden spoon and began dropping gobs of green gel on Up. "This'll make some of the pain go away and you won't get too much of a burn-"

"He's asleep-" pointed out Taz.

Mac snorted," Probably just fainted. C'mon kid. You need some clothes and I know my wife would love to meet you." Taz followed Mac away from Up and out of the hospital.

Groggily, Up stirred from his dreams. There had been a wolf made of fire stalking him, it had growled something, it had _talked_, Zombie Christ he was going stir crazy.

Searing pain knifed its way from his waist to his neck, gingerly Up touched his tightly wrapped torso, "Shit." He grimaced again, even talking was a bad idea. He hoped nothing exciting happened for two days, at least. He looked around, surprised to see Taz curled under a woolly blanket on a couch next to the bed, her face was softened and he rather liked seeing her face devoid of murderous intentions. How long had he been out? He sat up and looked for someone to ask, a medic walked in to his curtained-off area, "Lieutenant Up?" He nodded, "You've been out for most of the day, it's about 6pm. How do you feel? Do you want some medicine?"

"Naw," he lied, "I'm fine, thank ya'." The medic smiled and patted Taz's head, "She's been here the whole day. Dr. Mac had to drag her away so she would eat." Up nodded and the medic left.

He slid out of the bed and began rummaging the bedside table for a shirt. "Hey! Where are jou going? Mac said not to get up, jour skin is all..." she wiggled her fingers and grimaced. Up smiled, "I have ta find a shirt Taz."

"There is one in de bottom drawer, Mac said it was _especial_ for jou," Taz unwrapped herself from the blanket and pushed Up to the side. She pulled out a black long sleeve from the night stand and tossed it at him, "Are jour eyes _azul?"_ Up stuck his head through the shirt, it fit a little too tight but he figured that was on purpose; the airy, tight material felt good," What's azel? My eyes aren't hazel, they're blue." Taz grinned, "Dat's what azul means, _idiota._"

Up scowled, he didn't understand a lick of Spanish but he could understand her tone, "Why do you curse so much?"

Taz shook out her black hair, "First of all, dat wasn't a _real_ curse word, and secondly, _mi mama_ cursed like a sailor. It's in my genes to curse." Up laughed, "Cursin' ain't genetics. It's habit. Nice threads, where'd you get 'em?" Taz spun on one foot," They're nice, _No?_Ophelia gave them to me." Up noticed that she said Ophelia's name differently, the vowels and consonants pronounced in the front of her mouth instead of at the back. She wore baggy grey jeans and combat boots with a standard issued black ensign's top. "Very nice," agreed Up, but he wasn't looking at Taz as he said it, he stared at someone who had just walked into the hospital.

"Isa!" he happily called out to her. Smiling, Isa trotted over to them and tightly hugged Up, "I heard Mac was doing some new procedure on you, how'd it go? No lost bits?" Up spread his arms, "I'm alive." Isa laughed and turned towards Taz, "How're you doing? I heard you helped. Congrats on not killing Up. He's one of the best. We can't afford to lose him." Taz offered a smirk and retreated to her chair, pulling out a book from between the cushions. Curious, Up turned, "What're you reading?"

"Paradise Lost" Taz flipped to page 394 and continued reading.

Isa raised her eyebrows in surprise, "Anyways, Pryce is asking you to come and talk to him after dinner." Up frowned, "Do you know why?" Isa shook her head, "Nope, but it's dinner time right now. Aren't you both starving?" Taz leapt up from the couch, "Yes!" She grabbed Up and Isa's arms and pulled them to the door of the hospital.

On their way to the mess hall, Isa and Up talked about what was going on in the war. Taz wasn't really interested in the _puto_ robots, so instead she gazed around her at the trees and scenery that Pryce was so proud of. She kept bumping into Up and even tripped into a hedge until he finally just took her hand to keep her from falling. Once they reached the mess hall Up let her go and handed her a green tray. There were a lot of ensigns and lieutenants and even some lieutenant-commanders crowding the line but Isa just shoved her way into the thick of it, not caring about the glares that were thrown at her.

"She's so totally awesome," said Taz reverently. Up snorted and nudged her to keep the line moving. "I wouldn't try and copy her, she's often in trouble for some reason or another. The only reason she hasn't gotten demoted is that she's so great at R&D."

"Are you being _nice_ Up?" Isa approached them with her tray full, grinning broadly. Up's jaw line tinged pink, "I was telling Taz why you haven't gotten demoted." Taz smiled broadly at the sneer that Isa gave Up, "Hmph, I'll _maybe_ save you two losers a place!"

~o0o~

Taz'lation:

_ese:_Is a colloquiolism. It means guy, man, dude, etc. The tone of voice in which it's used is quite important. With Taz, it's more often than not implied to mean idiot.


	4. Home Fire

Taz and Up piled food onto their plates and found Isa near a table at the back, shoveling mashed potatoes into her mouth. Silently, Up tucked in to his food. Taz looked around while she ate. People were staring at her curiously and impudently, she stared right back. She wasn't sorely out of place but she was _a lot_ younger than most people here. Taz turned her attention back to her own table. Most of the people were Lieutenants and Lt.-Commanders; Taz looked at Isa carefully, she had flyaway curly gold hair and dark hazel eyes, she sported a collection of scars on her hands and face but Taz judged her to be 20 something although she couldn't be sure. The cafeteria was noisy and rowdy, she could hardly hear herself think; she spied a familiar curly-haired ensign talking animatedly with a bushy-haired, large-toothed girl. When she turned her attention back, she saw Up trying to say something to the person next to him through a giant piece of chicken wedged into his mouth. His dark hair flopped to one side and Taz could see he had a few silver-grey hairs. He turned to look at her and she chuckled at the chicken strip falling out of his mouth.

"You're disgusting, Up." Isa flicked a bit of potato at him, he dodged it and managed to swallow the mouthful, "I have no idea why you would say that to me, Lieutenant Isa." He widened his eyes in fake earnestness, Taz finally got a good look at how truly blue his eyes were, Isa laughed and sent another potato bit at him. Taz decided they were the exact same color as the plasma that powered the energy reactors around the galaxy.

"Where am I going to sleep tonight?" Taz and Up had bid Isa a good night and were headed towards the hospital compound, meandering amongst the pathways, going in no particular direction. Up cocked his head. "I s'ppose you can sleep in the hospital, 'til we can drive you t' a refugee camp."

"Right."

Up gazed down at Taz, "Don' ya want t' go t' a camp? Ya sound angry." Taz wanted to take out the knife and stab the tree they just passed, she wanted to stab the bush, the ground, herself, "I do _not_ want to go to a _mentado campaniento_. I want...-" They arrived at the familiar green and white building and Taz fell silent.

Up sighed in frustration," Well there's nowhere _else_ t' go, unless you'd rather go t' an orphanage and I don' know where t' find one o' those." Taz shook her head, "There _are_other places. I'll just sleep in the hospital tonight, _buenas noches Up_." She patted his arm and turned to go inside the hospital.

"Goodnight Taz, sweet dreams." Taz turned around, gave him a funny look and shut the door behind her. _Why would you tell her that_, the voice sneered at him, _why would she have sweet dreams? Her family just got__killed__._ Up scratched his head and pushed his hair away from his eyes, he couldn't imagine Taz having nightmares, but it was possible. He turned and hurried to Pryce's office.

"You wanted to see me Commander?" Up entered the large office and stood behind the desk. "Mmhm, tuk a s't." Pryce had papers in his mouth and motioned for Up to take a seat. "H'w y've b'n?"

"Er Pryce, man. I cannot understan' a blasted word you're sayin'," Up sat down. Pryce laughed let the papers fall from his mouth, "Sorry Up, I was trying to keep some apart from the rest, but as you can see," he gestured at the disaster of his desk," That's proving quite impossible." He picked up the spit out papers and placed them on the floor. "I wanted to ask you what you wanted to do with the girl, since you seem to have taken her under your wing."

Up was caught off guard," Uh...I guess..." he shook his head, "Shouldn't she go to a refugee camp?"

Pryce squinted at him, "Is that what she wants?"

Up was annoyed, "What else am I s'ppose to do with her? She's a child."

Pryce shrugged," You seemed attached to her, Up. And let's be honest, you haven't been OK since the attack on the D.F." Up glared at him and Pryce held his hands up," I'm just pointing out that you've smiled more _today_ than the past six months. Even with Isa around."

Up sunk low into his seat, thinking. Pryce was his best friend, he could be truthful with him, "There _have_ been a lot of nightmares. And even when I'm just walkin' around base, sometimes I'll see people's faces turn into robot face-plate. It's crazy as shit and I 'm afraid I'll fly off the handle." Pryce's forehead scrunched in concentration, "Well, maybe it'd help if you kept the girl close for a little while. And she could be useful to the base as a civilian-runner, of sorts." Up scowled, "No. That sounds dangerous." Pryce looked incredulous, "Civilian-runners are almost _never_in danger. Zombie Jesus, Up! I don't want you going bat-shit crazy, I can't afford to lose you; not only are you _the_ best lieutenant the League has _ever_ had_,_" Pryce slammed is fist into the table," but you're also my best friend! Either you keep the girl or it's off to the loony bin with you!"

Furious, Up leapt from his chair and kicked it into the wall, "You ARE NOT putting her in danger!"

"Or what-?" Pryce also leapt to his feet, snarling, "For dead God's sake Up, you have to put the past behind you. Hakuna Matata and all that shit!" Pryce abandoned trying to organize his papers and jumped around the desk.

BOOM...!

Pryce was thrown into Up, who pin-wheeled his arms for a second before crashing onto and breaking his chair. The lights short-circuited, leaving them in darkness.

"The fuck?" "No idea..."

They both lay there in silence for two seconds before blue shrill sirens began wailing all over the place. Up leapt to his feet, dragging his Commander along with him. He kicked the door open and found, to his horror that most of the base was on fire. A screaming plane flew overhead, making their ears ring. Pryce ducked back inside and soon reappeared holding two flaming-zappers and one regulation zapper. Up pointed towards the direction of the hospital and Pryce smirked, "The girl?" They ran the whole way, Up had to bite his tongue to the point where it was bleeding.

His heart loosened when he saw that the hospital was still standing, they barged inside looking for the medics and Taz. The deafening roar of the jets was louder inside, "GET THE PATIENTS, AND THE GIRL."

Up didn't even nod, just dashed away. He found Taz huddled with the five other ensigns near the supply closet. He looked at the ensigns, most were still pretty banged up, the least injured one was Taz so he handed the regulation zapper to her. "You point and you pull the trigger, okay?" Taz sheathed her knife and gripped the zapper a little too desperately for Up's taste. He shifted his zapper to one arm and helped carry an ensign with broken legs towards the exit. Pryce appeared with most of the staff and they relieved him of the ensign, he motioned for Taz to stick close to them. Pryce turned to Taz, "No matter what. Don't leave Up, okay?"

"Okay." Pryce could see her shaking, her legs buckling under her. They were all standing outside, completely exposed, but Pryce turned around and gripped Taz's shoulders so tightly that she could feel her pulse under his fingers. "No!" he stared directly into her eyes, "I mean it! SWEAR that you won't leave his side. It's dangerous to go alone!" Taz screamed back," I got it!" She screamed some gibberish in Spanish that Pryce ignored.

They made their way across the base, picking up stragglers and shooting down robots that approached them. Up knew where they were headed as soon as the building came into sight "Pile them in Mac!" Pryce signaled to Mac and his staff to enter the hangar. Pryce ran around the hangar and was pleased to discover a medium sized space cruiser in the back. The Commander signaled Mac into the ship, "Get them on board!" Pryce and Up proceeded to throw open the front hangar doors so people could run in to safety. Then Pryce ran to a sleekly built starship and started pulling on a flight suit. Up followed him, "What're ya doing Pryce?"

"Gonna give you guys cover! Get the other flyers to help out." Up went to talk to the large group forming in the middle of the hangar. He spotted Taz hanging near the fringe of the group and nodded to her briefly. Once Up was leading the flyers back to Pryce, Taz wandered away from the main group to the doors, she peeked out. Shining autobots were dropping bombs and there was a wave of robots coming over the walls. She felt a thrill run down her spine and gripped her zapper a bit tighter.

"Help!"

Taz's eyes roved the flaming base, it looked like a Welsh Greenback had taken up residence...

"Help!"

THERE! Taz debated for two seconds and then left the hangar. Dodging flaming debris, she dashed to the voice, "Lieutenant Isa!" She crouched and tried to pry the twisted metal away from the lieutenant's legs with one hand, she propped the zapper by her and tried using both hands; it budged, barely. "Robot!" Taz scooped the zapper into her hands and leapt behind a piece of debris, twisting in midair around to shoot. She landed safely behind a twsted piece of metal and continued to shoot until the robot lay smoking.

"Thank Dead God," sighed Isa, "Now go get Up!" Taz shook her head, "I can do it!" Isa tried pulling herself out but she only ended up embedding the metal deeper into her leg. "No, you can't Taz, the metal's too big and there are more robots coming!" Taz shoved the zapper into Isa's hands," There's no time! Make jourself useful. I don't see anything blocking jour hands." Isa laughed and nodded, "Point." Taz kneeled by Isa again and began prying the metal back, there was a lot of blood oozing. Taz struggled to lift the large metal piece, she tightened her back and pulled with all her might. She could feel the muscles in her neck snap taught; the zapper fire faded as though far away. Cursing and screaming, Taz dug her heels into the earth and pulled the metal away from Isa.

"Ouch!" Isa flinched, missing a robot, she recocked the gun and killed it. "Hey! I can move my legs!" She tossed the zapper to Taz who sprayed fire at the five robots, laser-holes puncturing their torsos and heads. "Aim a little higher," Isa advised while she struggled and wiggled out from under the metal. She finally collapsed at Taz's feet, panting and shaking, her legs covered in blood. Taz sat down too, her right knee felt funny. Pulling Isa to her feet and ignoring her knee, Isa wrapped an arm around Taz's waist, "Don't stop shooting!" They slowly made their way across the base towards the hangar. Isa looked to the sky and could see several of their fighter jets streaking amongst the airborne bots. As they approached the hangar they saw Up and Vasili struggling to keep back a wave of robots from entering the hangar. Frightened at being left behind, Isa and Taz rushed to the hangar and as soon as they were inside Vasili slammed the doors shut and started screaming at Taz.

Taz ignored Vasili and kept her eyes on the ground, sure that Up was glaring at her. Up roughly grabbed her left arm, grabbed Isa's right arm and half-dragged, half-carried both of them into the sleek GLEE cruiser waiting for them. "I can walk, thanks." Isa coldly snatched her arm back and went to sit down at her designated place in the starship.

"Taz."

Taz refused to look up from the hatched steel floor of the cruiser, she heard him sigh and allowed herself to be dragged into a seat.

Up eyed the girl uneasily. She was sitting in the passenger seat, glaring at the floor as if wishing it to combust. She carefully strapped herself in and gripped the arm rests desperately when Pryce called for take-off. Up turned back to his station and adjusted his gun, making sure the ship's shields were functioning and that the flyers had given them a clear shot for the stars. "All systems go, Commander," he drawled into his mike set. Pryce's voice boomed from his chair, "Let's get the hell out of here then!"

Lt. Vasili gunned the ship's throttle and they smashed through the hangar's back wall. There were fewer robots there, before the autobots realized what had happened, the blue and green starship, plus its escort of fighter ships, were clear of the danger.

~o0o~


	5. GLEE Ranks trivia for the curious

Author's Rant Space: So I always wondered at the ranks and years of GLEE. I made my own up, basing it off of Star Trek ranks. So here it is, my official GLEE ranks.

Work Crew Officer 3rd class –Three pips. The pips are either bronze, silver, or gold depending on prestige. Pips are pinned to the collar on the left side. Six months of training.

Work Crew Officer 2nd Class – Two pips. Bronze, silver, or gold. The losing of the pips is a great honor. One year of training.

Work Crew Officer 1st Class – One single gold pip worn on the collar the first year, and the second year a thick gold stripe at the cuff is added. Two years of service.

~Prestige is gained or lost depending on acts of bravery or outstanding performance. Only five Work Crew Officers (WCO) in the entire history of GLEE have been pinned with golden pips, Lieutenant Up is one of those Officers.

Ensign - Triangular silver pin resembling the earliest of starships worn on lapels, and one thin silver shoulder stripe. A shoulder stripe is added every year. Three years of service.

Petty Officer – Silver braid on the left shoulder Three silver cuff stripes remain at the left shoulder from the person's time spent as an ensign. One year of service.

Senior Chief Petty Officer – One Gold braid at the left shoulder. One thin braid stitched into cuffs. One year of service

Lieutenant Jr. Officer- Metal ribbon outline on lapel. One gold braid loop hung from left shoulder. One thin gold stripe at the cuff is added every year. Indefinite time of service until recommended for promotion. The shortest time LJO has been passed was three years, the longest time was nine years.

Lieutenant – Metal ribbon on lapel with a four point star in the middle. Two gold braids at the left shoulder. A service time of at least three years is required.

Lieutenant-Commander – Metal ribbon on lapel with two four point stars one at each end. Same two gold braids at the left shoulder. There is a three year service required.

Commander – Metal ribbon traded in for a black circular pin on the lapel with four silver filigree arrowheads pointing inward. One broad silver stripe at the cuff. Four years plus of service, must be recommended by the lieutenant, the captain and rear-admiral of the commander before being promoted to Captain. Commander is the highest ranking field officer. The rest of the promotions are for officers who will usually wish to stay off the battle field. An officer can serve indefinitely as Commander but many choose to be promoted, promotion requires three years of service at least.

Captain – Same circular silver pin as the commander but with four filigree gold arrowheads pointing inward signifying the four compass points. Two broad silver stripes at the cuff. Five years of service are required until promotion is possible. This can be faster if the Officer chooses to be a field officer although this option is rarely chosen.

Rear Admiral- Three years of service until promotion, if Officer applies for it. One gold braid on each shoulder. One gold braid stitched at each cuff. Silver metal collar insignia, four stars on the triangular-shaped insignia. The insignia is a long metal triangle made to mimic the shape of a comet's tail. Three stars are silver and one star is gold.

Admiral- Three years of service before an application can be submitted for promotion. One gold braid at each cuff plus a thick gold braid at each shoulder, comet-tail metal collar insignia with two gold stars and two silver stars

Fleet Admiral - Indefinite Service until retirement. Two gold braids stitched into each cuff, gold braid at each shoulder. Comet-tail metal collar insignia. All four stars are gold.

* * *

P.S. - A Ranger after becoming an ensign may remain at that level indefinitely. However, they must finish the training as if they were going for the next level. They must also take refresher courses and tests to keep at a high enough level.


	6. Ranger Danger

~o0o~

There was complete silence for ten minutes after they cleared Earth's atmosphere. Vasili concentrated on boosting their shields in case the robots followed them, Pryce sat hunched in his chair and Up barked orders to the ensigns stationed at the gun turrets. Isa busied herself with drafting an emergency message to send to GLEE headquarters. Up sat, shoulders tight, wondering what Pryce was going to do. Isa announced through the communication system that GLEE was ordering them to remain in orbit for 48 hours to make sure no robots traced their ship back to HQ. "Thank you Lt. Isa, please get everyone to the main deck, I need to speak with them," Pryce managed to remain calm. Isa's voice sounded crisp, even through the communications system, "...Roger that, sir. Even the medics?" Idly, Pryce flicked imaginary dust from his coat, "Just two medics. This won't take long." Taz tucked her legs underneath her and watched Pryce take an iron grip with his crew. Even Up kept one eye on his controllers and one eye on Pryce, ready to jump at a command. Everyone trickled in within five minutes, the last to arrive were the medical personnel, wiping their hands on bloody rags.

"Up...?"

The Lieutenant swiveled his chair to face his Commander.

"Up," Pryce repeated," How would the robots know where our base was?"

"...Information, sir."

"How would they get that information?" Pryce was glaring at the rest of the starship while he talked with Up. Many bowed their heads as his gaze swept by them. When Pryce turned to look at Taz he was surprised to find the small girl looking at him with a mixture of confusion and defiance. The medics shrugged as he ran his eyes through their ranks.

"Spies, sir?" answered Up at last, hesitating.

"Perhaps..." mused Pryce, "How'd you get that burn on your chest Up?"

Up was thoroughly confused and about to punch Pryce in the face, _what was he trying to get at? _Frustrated Up growled, "A chef- bot, _sir."_

Pryce snapped his fingers, "Right! Because some genius ensigns decided to go for a stroll, correct?" Up nodded curtly. "We weren't able to retrieve all of the bodies, many were just small pieces of shredded beef by the time we got there, but say..."thoughtfully, Pryce stroked his dark brown beard, "Say that not all of the ensigns died, and in fact couple of them survived... What then?"

Up's stomach turned to ice and he could see his fellow Lieutenants' faces when they realized what Pryce had been hinting at for the last ten minutes. Isa's mouth hung open and Vasili closed her eyes briefly before muttering something softly under her breath.

With a grim smile on his face, Pryce swiveled to look at Up.

Swallowing, Up responded, "If they weren't picked up by us then they were mos' likely captured and tortured, sir. Mos' likely dead by now." Pryce's icy stare swept across the starship's main deck. He pulled out a small black square remote from deep within his coat pocket and with a crunching sound, broke the little plastic case that covered a dark blue button, he firmly pushed the button.

The crushed button went flying across the main bridge and when it landed with a dull thud Pryce stalked off towards his quarters. Briefly, Up closed his eyes and when he opened them again he saw Lt. Isa hanging her head and Lt. Vasili was still murmuring softly with her head bowed. Shocked at Pryce's decision, everyone watched the Commander leave the main deck in silence. One of the medics began weeping, several ensigns looked as if they wanted to die.

They were now passing the moon, waiting for a response from GLEE, and Vasili threw the ship onto autopilot. She nodded to a Lieutenant-Commander who ordered everyone to help the medics move the wounded to and for the rest to report to their first shift. Up unstrapped himself from his seat and ambled over to Taz.

"What happened Up?"

Isa joined them briefly before murmuring that she was going to go help the medics. He rubbed his eyes, "Come on Taz. I have to get you figured out before I start my shift." He was avoiding her question. She stood and followed Up silently off the bridge, the metal and plastic corridors were painted a bright blue with a gold stripe running lengthwise. The gold-stripe felt cool under her fingers, she placed a hand on his elbow and he paused, "What was dat little button?"

"Self-destruction."

"Of what?" Taz was whispering, afraid to hear the answer echo in the hallways.

"The entire fucking base." Up turned and punched a large dent into the wall, "Along with those who didn't make it into the hangar." He withdrew his fist slowly, little chips of the wall falling from his bloody knuckles. He started walking quicker and Taz had to trot to keep up with him. They didn't speak for a while until they stood before a dark non-descript door. "This is my room, stay here until I get back." He turned on his heel and left without another word.

Taz was stunned, she stood there gazing at Up's retreating back, "Jou can't leave me here!" He turned, "Just stay there! Or go find Mac! " Up didn't really care what she did as long as she stay out from underfoot.

Taz was furious, _que jodidos_ did he expect her to do here? She peeked into the room, it was sparse and dark. Mac seemed a better option, Taz walked around until she found the hospital, that familiar green crescent.. The hospital wasn't complete chaos, but she wouldn't get a chance to speak with Mac. There were too many wounded that needed healing for Mac to be company. She debated for a few seconds then stalked away from the hospital. Walking had always helped her think and this starship would be cool to explore.

The hallways were quite large and soon Taz was lost, she didn't mind, she was still numb from what had happened in the last four days. Presumably, starships all had names. Taz wondered what this one was called, she'd like to live here, amongst the stars and Rangers. Many ensigns asked her if she was lost but she just shook her head at them and kept walking, pretending to know where she was going. Soon, she found herself in the cargo hold of the starship. There was black piping everywhere and metal crates with packing spilling out of the holes crowded the ground. Sighing deeply, Taz wedged herself in between two crates and tucking the zapper under her head, she drifted off to sleep. The colorful ribbons on Isa's uniform, on Up's breast-pocket , and the stripes on Mac's shoulders floated behind her eyelids.

Mac felt frazzled, he looked frazzled too; his glasses hung slightly askew and his hair was standing on end. It was noon, the attack on the base had happened around 11 the previous night and Mac was close to falling asleep on his feet, clipboard in hand. The hospital was now quiet, albeit with many groans and complaints issuing from the injured Rangers. He rubbed his eyes.

"Mac?" a woman approached him and offered him a crooked grin, she saw his eyes closing in on themselves and offered her arm to him, "Come on Mac. Let's go home." Chuckling darkly, Mac took her arm and lead her to the door," We have no home Ophelia, hopefully GLEE will find it in their pockets to offer us one." She shook her head sadly, "I hope everyone else was able to get away from the blast site." The woman's dark skin was made darker in the low light, her lip trembled slightly.

Mac shrugged miserably. "Who knows. And we can't go back to attempt a rescue mission. GLEE has ordered Pryce back to HQ _immediately_ so they can assess the situation. This was a very serious breach."

"MAC!" Up rounded the corner and gripped Mac's shoulders, slamming him into the wall. "Up! You're crushing me!" Mac gasped. Up released him with a murmured apology. The woman stepped away with a bemused expression on her face, "Calm down, lieutenant. What's wrong?"

"There's a- Where-?" Up took a deep breath and dragged his hands through his hair, "I can't find Taz."

"What do you mean..." Mac glanced at his wife.

She had frozen angrily next to him, "How do you lose a little girl?" Ophelia shouted and to Mac's surprise Up backed away from her fury. "I dropped her off at my room! I guess she didn' want t' stay there, I told her t' find you! I had t' get t' my first shift."

"Well that's a load of poppycock! You know that the hospital was chock full of injured people." It was difficult for Mac to keep his lips shut while his petite wife shouted down one of the toughest Rangers into a corner. Speechless for only a moment, Up angrily turned and stomped off, "Never mind! I'll just find her by myself!"

"Well! And I always use to wonder if the rumors about him were true," Ophelia grabbed Mac's hand again.

Their footsteps echoed softly. "Well there's your answer, my River Queen."

Ophelia smiled.

He ran the length of the starship calling her name and asking people for her. Everyone incredulously asking him how he managed to lose a little girl until he punched an ensign for his lip. The ensign received a concussion and when he arrived to the hospital, was informed by the medic that he was lucky Up hadn't fractured his skull. After that, word spread of what was going on and everyone stayed out of Up's way.

Steam was issuing from the cooling cores that were found in the cargo space, Up sat down on a metal box full of zappers and wondered where the hell a girl could hide on such a spaceship that barely fit 200 people.

"Up?"

He nearly jumped out of his pants. "TAZ!"

He rushed to her and lifted her from her hiding place. She was yawning and looking better than she had in the past days. "_Bajame!_" She swung at him with her zapper and he carefully placed her on the floor before he was hit.

"Why the hell are you here?"

"Where was I supposed to be?" Taz asked coldly and slid back between the cargo boxes. With a practiced movement, she tucked the zapper back under her head and leaned against it.

"With Mac." Up sat in front of her and pulled out a cigarette. With a flash of her eyes, the cigarette was stolen and crushed under her foot. "Smoking is for _idiotas_ who want to die."

Smirking, Up pulled out another cigarette and lit it, "Who th' hell wants t' live forever? 'Sides, my job's more 'f a hazard than this." He blew smoke into her face, Taz leapt out from her hiding place, coughing and swearing at him.

"Maybe there are reasons?"

Up had never understood the expression, doe-eyed, but maybe now he was looking at it, at her.

"Huh?" He took a last drag of the cigarette and crushed it under the heel of his hand. Taz resumed her place, sitting across from him in the cramped space..

Taz ignored him, "I've decided what I want to do."

Up was relieved, "Great! Where do you want to go-?"

"No! Not where, what! Jou left me standing there and I realized dat I am done with being helpless. I need to go to _La Academia_."

He tipped his head to one side, "Come again?"

"I want to be a Ranger!" She sat back down and propped her fists on her knees.

Up looked at her. Skinny with long black tresses framing her face and a zapper propped behind her. He thought of the first time he saw her in the bloody blue ball gown, scared and unsure of herself. But during the escape from the base, covered in mud and blood, her face had shone fiercely when she'd dragged Isa to safety. They sat there crouching, knees almost touching ,before Up finally spoke.

"Okay, I'll help you." he said it slowly, and Taz looked confused.

"Really?" Taz had expected an argument… a fight, something.

Up nodded, "Really really. And sorry I left you stranded."

Laughing Taz threw her arms around him and squeezed tightly," _Gracias! Gracias! Te perdono." _She pulled away and punched him in the ear, "But don't jou _ever_ do dat again. _Entiendes?" _Rubbing his head, Up agreed, "Fine. But we'll have to speak with Pryce to try and get you a special writ to enter the academy since you're not 18 yet. Now get off me."

Taz leapt to her feet and pulled Up to his. "What are jou going to say to convince them?"

"I'll think of something. Don't worry about that. Oh, and you're going to be bunking with Vasili until we get to HQ."

"What?" Taz shook her head vehemently, "No! _Esa puta me odia!_ I'm _not_ staying with her." Yawning, Up shrugged, "Well it's either that or sleeping here again." Taz punched him in the gut and he grinned.

A few pencils and pens fell to the ground and Isa watched them roll under the desk, had she heard them correctly? "No," she said simply, "She's too young. She's not strong enough, yet."

Taz was standing behind Up, Vasili, and Isa. They were seated before Pryce's desk. "We-ell, she _did_ save Isa, under live-fire, immense pressure and managed to _run_ back to safety with a torn ACL," Vasili drummed her fingers on her arm rest," I will give her my recommendation."

Taz felt her face turning hot.

"I agree with Vasili," Up gestured to Taz," She's shown herself to act with initiative under extreme pressure, even with no training. And with a few years of the academy under her belt I imagine she'll make GLEE proud." _And me_, he added silently.

Pryce nodded solemnly at each Ranger's words. "You may all leave, I wish to speak with Taz alone." Pryce nodded to each Lieutenant as they left. He leaned forward and gestured towards a chair, Taz chose the one Isa had vacated.

"Why?" Pryce looked at her, measuring her, and Taz swallowed through the lump in her throat.

There was no other way to say this, so she gripped the arm rests and took a deep breath," Sir, I-I could not do anything to stop de robots when they attacked my family. And I couldn't do anything when my friends were attacked last year. I keep being put on de sidelines, not because I'm scared, but because people, dey- dey think I'm too weak." Anger suddenly welled up in her chest, it rushed into her head and she had a hard time keeping the tears fro mrushing down her face, "Well I'm DONE with that! I'm done being _una niña! Ya creci! _I'm done dreaming and being cared for..." Her heart was beating fast and she wasn't sure when she had thrown her chair to the ground.

Taz closed her eyes, Dead Goddamnit, she'd lost control, just like a child, a useless child. But when she forced them back open, Pryce was grinning at her. A broad and goofy grin plastered across his square face, "You're in, kid." Taz gave a happy yelp and reached across the desk, knocking everything over to hug Pryce, Pryce chuckled and hugged her briefly. "Excuse me, sir." She slammed the door shut on her way out.

Pryce was left alone with that giant smile still plastered across his face. "You're welcome, Up."

Taz ran out of Pryce's office and spied the three Lieutenants loitering just outside the door. "Well?" Vasili demanded, propping her hands on her hips, "What was decided?" Taz grinned and held her enrollment papers aloft, "He approved it!" and threw her arms around Up. He hugged her back and placed her carefully on her feet, Taz then turned to Vasili and did the same," Thank you! _Gracias!"_ Vasili clumsily returned her hug.

Isa stood nearby, she snorted at the celebration, "_Congratulations. _Vasili and Up, You're sending a 15 year old to her death!"

"For Dead God's sake Isa!" Vasili angrily stepped forward," If this is what she wants then who are you to deny her? _Who are YOU_ to deny her this, you made the same decision!"

Isa's hazel eyes paled to a bright yellow, "She still has a life ahead of her! What does she know about war? What does she know of watching-"

"I know plenty," Taz could see now, why Isa had been so nice to her," I saw my _mama_ be torn, limb from limb. I left my old self behind, in dat ballroom. I lost my name when I lost _mi familia_." Taz paused, she could feel Up's warm and reassuring hand on her shoulder, so she continued," How old?"

"What?" Isa stepped back, hands fumbling for the wall to hold her steady, "I- I don't understand-." Vasili was staring hard at Taz, dark eyes boring into her.

"How old were jou when jou lost them? Taz stepped forward, hand outstretched. Isa could feel the tears pushing their way into her throat, her stomach felt like it was about to fall out of her butt, her eyes felt hot. She violently stepped back, smashing her elbow into the wall.

She turned to look at Up, looking for something ruthless, and found instead eyes full of pity. "I don't want _ANY _of your pity. The choice I made was when I was old enough to make my own decisions. _You_," she gestured angrily towards Taz, "You're not old enough to drive, let alone know what you want to do for the rest of your life, especially _this_." Isa wiped a couple of bitter tears away from her eyes and walked away from them.

~o0o~

Taz'lation:

_Te perdono: _I forgive you.

_Esa puta me odia:_ That bitch/whore hates me.


	7. Light the Road

The cruiser slowly grazed the upper edges of the atmosphere and they entered the airspace of the GLEE base. Taz had overheard some ensigns talking and gathered that the weather was wet for half the year and bone dry the other half. Also that it was Dead Goddamned beautiful there.

The Glee cruiser flew lower and lower, now they were engulfed in a giant cloud system. A purple and blue lightning storm raged around the cruiser and when they descended below the clouds, blue tinged mountains came into view. An airstrip materialized underneath them. Taz craned her neck and spied cream and blue buildings standing behind the GLEE airport, set apart from a high rise city a few miles away. The appearance of the sprawling base made Taz twice as determined to get into the academy. She would be the toughest sonofabitch there ever was and..._and what?..._. Those _putos robots no se van a salir con la suya,_ Taz swore to herself, _No voy a descansar hasta verlos morir en agonía._ She withdrew from the window near her seat and threw herself forcefully back, crossing her arms tightly over her chest. She drew curious looks from some of the ensigns but Taz ignored them. Soon they would land and she'd have her meeting with the Rear Admiral.

Pryce was sitting next to Taz who was trembling. He patted her shoulder and when she looked at him he gave her a warning glare; she forced herself to stop shaking. Once they were admitted into the Rear Admiral's office, Pryce wanted Taz to be stony-faced and to not be trembling like a chihuahua. They were buzzed in by a bored secretary.

The Rear Admiral was squinting at the written recommendations from Lt. Up, Lt. Vasili, and Dr. Mackenz. "Impressive," he murmured, "especially this one," he laid down Up's letter. The Rear Admiral sighed, "But, Pryce, what do _you_ say?"

Taz froze at those words, she'd never even thought about asking Pryce's opinion. Pryce chewed the inside of his cheek for a measured moment, "I believe she will make an excellent addition to GLEE sir, given her age. She has already shown many of the traits that we look for in ensigns. With a couple of years of hard training she'll do very well." The Rear Admiral steepled his fingers and rested his chin on his thumbs, thinking.

Taz wanted to knock her head back into Pryce's nose and tear off the black fuzz that topped the Rear Admiral's head. That morning had been very stressful. Vasili had braided her long hair into a fishtail that swung around her shoulder and that lone bit of kindness _from Vasili_ had sent Taz into a teeth-chattering frenzy. Both Up and Vasili had kept a constant stream of advice for her meeting with the Rear Admiral, it had been helpful but now she was so nervous she was seeing spots flicker in her vision. _Don't do this, don't do that, make sure you do this and don't even think of cursing in that room_, Taz wanted to puke. The Rear Admiral was speaking with Pryce for a long time but the conversation sounded far away and echoed strangely in her ears. The meanings of the words were lost on Taz, _Perdi mi Ingles?_

Bwop bwop bwop bwop bwop. It sounded like a trombone through a telephone.

Dimly, she felt Pryce shake her shoulder and heard the dark man say, "Approved." Taz's ears snapped open at that and she struggled for only a second to remember her English, "Thank you, sir!"

The Rear Admiral smiled at her, bright teeth shining. "Make them proud, Officer Taz." Taz looked down at the sheaf of paper handed to her, "Is that my title?" The Rear Admiral nodded," That's the normal, every day use. You're official title is Work Crew Officer Taz, 3rd Class. But that's only used in ceremonies." Pryce saluted the Rear Admiral and steered Taz to the door.

Once the large mahogany door closed behind them, neither Pryce nor Taz could do anything else but stand there and grin at one another like idiots.

When they broke the news to Up and Vasili, Pryce announced that he would take them all out to Space Town Buffet to celebrate. They invited Isa but she primly declined and closed her bedroom door in Taz's face.

The restaurant was a festive building built like a Southern house. Taz had to admit that she'd never seen anyone eat as much food as Pryce and Up. They kept getting more plates dripping with food from the buffet table. After the fifth time Pryce returned with an entire plate full of chicken wings, Vasili decided, "Where do you two put all of that food? Are you two wolves?" Taz chuckled cheerfully. The night was full of bright lights, and cheerful banter. She was happier now than she had in a long time. The events from her quinceanera were far from Taz's mind. Pryce and Vasili argued about the chances of the TuneSquad making it to the semifinals in spaceball with Up loudly interjecting every so often that baseball was much more exciting. They talked and ate deep into the night. They only left when the staff kicked them out because Up, who was tired of getting new plates, simply brought over the entire buffet pan of collard greens to their table.

They stood outside talking for a while until Taz convinced Up to give her a piggy back ride to the car because she was so full, "I feel like..._tan llena que..."_ Words failed her so she just hung limply on Up's back while both Pryce and Vasili teased him for carrying Taz to the car. On their way back to the base, Pryce and Vasili sat in the front, making plans to go out drinking; they invited Up but he said he had to wake up early tomorrow for a meeting, "And I can walk Taz over to your room, Vasili," Up yawned widely.

Vasili smirked, "_Sure_. I just think it's the years catching on to you." Up snorted, "I'm not even that old! We're about the same age." Up slung an arm over the back of the seat. Taz was enjoying their arguing immensely.

"Those grays don't lie to me, Up."

Sighing, Up said, "Just because you dye your own hair, _Vance._" He leaned forward in his seat, chuckling at Vasili's expression. "Is dat jour name?" Taz was surprised. The car bumped along the road, high beams lighting their way to the base's main gates.

"Yes," growled Vasili, "Not all of us are blessed with sane parents nor have just a nickname to represent us." They arrived to GLEE HQ and Vasili scribbled something on a piece of paper, "Here's my entry code. After you memorize it, eat the paper." Taz wasn't sure if Vasili was joking or not so she just took the paper and slid out of the car. The night was warm when the car rumbled off, leaving Taz and Up in the shadow of the GLEE gates.

Up punched in his code for the main gates and led Taz onto the base. It wasn't that different from the one in Mexico, Taz noticed the extensive amount of greenery. The buildings were different however, not aluminum but stone and marble and poured cement. Taz stretched her arms to the sky and contentedly walked beside Up.

"Tomorrow, I'll take you over to where new recruits get their gear and where they get their schedule. It'll be a busy 6 months for you, we probably won't get to talk very much." Taz was disappointed, "And after those _seis meses?_ What then?" He was getting use to deciphering what she said, even if it was in Spanish. Up shrugged, "You'll get assigned to a specialty. And after a few years of that, you'll get assigned to a starship and work with that crew until you become an ensign."

"I hope dat I get assigned to jour spaceship," the night suddenly seemed a little colder to Taz, although she couldn't place her finger on the reason why, "What specialty are jou?"

"Combat and Infiltration. Maybe, I'd like that. Usually most ensigns are, how'd-ya-say-it? _Idiotas?"_

Taz laughed at his accent, "Please, don't speak Spanish in front of me. It hurts my ears." She laid her own accent on thicker and Up cuffed her head, smirking; he continued, "Idiots then. And you've already shown yourself more capable than most of those nerf-herders."

They entered a dorm building that was dimly lit, "Fifth floor, I believe."

They traipsed together to a non-descript metal door with the names V. Vance and S. Bones stamped onto metal plates, and Taz punched in the five number code, " _Buenas Noches,_ Up." Before he could stop himself, Up said, "Sweet dreams."

Again, Taz shot him that confused look and Up sighed. The door shut quickly. Silently, Up stared at the door for a few moments before walking away. He wasn't sure what was going on in Taz's head but he hoped she felt better than when he first slung her over his shoulder. Up quietly traipsed upstairs towards his own room (the dormitory was very large). Tonight there had been no lies in her laughter, it had been true mirth; but when she had jumped down from the car he thought that her face had slipped, just for a second. Then it was back; the mask that was serene and cold.

He shouldered through a door on the sixth floor.

"Up?"

Up squinted into the darkened hallway, "Isa?"

She stepped closer and he could hear her sniffling, she was wearing grey sweats. "What are you doing Up?" He gestured to the stairs, "Me and Taz were dropped off, I took Taz to Vasili's room." Isa hugged herself tightly, "Why did Pryce assign Taz to Vasili? V's a...difficult person to be with." Up shrugged, "Bones seems to do just fine. What do you have against Vasili?" A frown cut across Up's face.

Isa seemed to crumble a little, she slid to the floor, "I wonder if Taz would've chosen a different path if she'd have bunked with me instead of _Vance_ for that first night." Isa said Vasili's name with distaste. Bewildered by her bitter tone, Up slid into a crouch beside her, "You wouldn't have changed anything. Taz would've probably chosen the same thing whether it was now, in three months or in three years. Why are you angry? Being a Ranger is great, I'm glad Taz chose this."

"No! No she wouldn't! And that's a positively _horrid_ thing to say!" Isa was furious, she turned to Up and grabbed his shoulders, "She's just a child! She should be in school! Worrying about boys and shoes and arguing with her mother. What do you understand of that girl? You're an orphan."

Up roughly pushed her away and stood, every line of his stance taut, "It's true. I didn't have anyone, I still don't and maybe that's what makes me such a good soldier. What do I care if the people next to me die? Who's to miss me if I bite it? But I," he paused, unsure of how he wanted to proceed, "... I remember when I wasn't an orphan."

There was surprise on Isa's face, but she clenched her jaw, "What does that matter? You weren't an orphan and then you were. Many people have the same story because of the war. You managed to deal with it and so does everyone else." There was no pity or sympathy on Isa's face; a rare thing for her.

Up looked down at his scarred hands, a curious smile crossing his face. He was struggling to find words," Yeah... for many it doesn't matter, but I didn't deal with it like I should have. That year following the robot invasion all I wanted was..." Up fell silent and stood there, wondering if... Slowly, Up rolled one of his sleeves to his elbow, exposing the calloused skin underneath, "Lucky for me I never got what I wished for every single night."

Although there were other scars on Up's arms, Isa saw the three that he was trying to show her and the blood drained from her face, "You were _that_ far gone, that you tried to take your own life?" She swallowed hard and continued, "But how do know Taz is that desperate too?" Rolling his sleeve back down, Up shrugged, "When I first took her to see Mac, she was like an exposed nerve. Which you'd expect out of anyone, but...she clutched that knife so tightly, I had no doubt what she wanted. But now, now that she has something to look forward to... Maybe she won't make the same mistakes I did with myself. Maybe this is a second chance that..."

Up shrugged again, his words failing him. The hallway was silent and they looked at one another, waiting for the other to speak. Isa slowly stood and wiped a few tears from her face. Up was standing there awkwardly, unsure if he should walk away or...Isa stepped closer towards him.

Up backed into the wall, "Isa?"

Although the lights were dimmed for the night, Up could see a determined look on her face, "No, Up. You have to listen now." She took another step closer and paradoxically remained silent. Up could see her wavy gold hair in fine detail.

She was too close to him, much too close.

He had nowhere else to step away; she grabbed the front of his shirt and Up attempted to pull away but Isa's grip was too strong. Isa could clearly see his irises, _such a beautiful blue,_ she thought wistfully and was amused to see the panic in his eyes. Carefully, she laid a warm kiss on his lips.

"Good night, Up." She released him and quietly slipped away into the darkened hallway.

Up lifted his hand to his mouth, her touch was burned into his lips; he seemed to stand there for an eternity. Finally, Up retreated from the hallway and somehow made it to his own room. Grateful that his roommate was absent, he stripped off his clothes and fell into a fitful sleep.

~o0o~

* The dormitory complex is a series of buildings interconnected with walkways. Each building is named after a famous Earth Astronaut. If a GLEE personnel has a family they are given a house on base and do not live in the dormitory. Such is the case with Dr. Mackenze, whereas Up and Pryce still live in the dormitory. Pryce's room is very luxurious and large, whereas WCO's live six to a room.

Taz'lation:

_putos robots no se van a salir con la suya:_ Those robots won't get their way.

_No voy a descansar hasta verlos morir en agonía_ : I won't rest until I see them die in agony.

_Perdi mi Ingles:_ Did I lose my English?

_tan llena que:_ so full that...


	8. First Day

~o0o~

A persistent knocking woke her. Groggily, she stumbled to the door and managed to pull it open. "_Que quieres?"_ Taz squinted into the bright hallway. "What are you doing Taz? You're going to be late for your recruitment!"

"_Mierda!"_ Taz tried to close the door but only managed to smash Up's shoulder in the door frame. She abandoned that attempt and hurriedly picked up her clothes from the chair before dashing to the bathroom. Chuckling, Up calmly shut the door after him and sat down on Vasili's bed. Vasili was absent, "Hm..." He could guess where she'd spent the night.

Twenty minutes later, Taz emerged, flicking her pony tail over her shoulder, "_Vamos_ Up!" They both ran out of the door, with Taz clutching her admittance papers.

A stern grey building greeted Taz, there was already a long line of goofballs, most of who were at least three years older than her and the rest who were much older. She turned to Up, "Are we going to meet up later?" Up nodded, "I have meetings 'nd a class to teach. So when yer done here just head back to the quad. I'll probably be done by the time yer released." Taz nodded, "Alright, I'll meet jou then."

Slowly, Taz approached the table. A bored looking officer snatched the papers from her. He looked suspiciously at Taz and then down, then back at Taz, then down again, "You _Taz?"_ Taz remembered Up's advice, _no lip, none, you'll get socked in the mouth faster than you can blink._ Taz knew that she could handle being punched, but she didn't want to be singled out any more than necessary, _not yet at least_, thought Taz grimly. "Yes, sir." The man snorted and handed the papers back, along with three silver square buttons, "Go that way." He waved her away, "Next!" Taz glanced down at the three buttons in her hand, they were about the size of her pinky nail.

The next five hours were some of the most stressful that Taz ever experienced, she was stripped down for a physical, given scores of injections, and had boxes and paper packets thrust upon her. The processing center was rowdy but Taz strode from station to station confidently. Most of the Rangers looked at her curiously and some with derision. Finally, she was shoved out of a door and stepped out blinking into the sun.

She was having trouble carrying all of the bags and boxes she'd been given. "Need a hand?" A friendly-faced recruit caught the box that was about to fall from her hands. He was somehow managing to balance all of his stuff with expert care.

"Thanks."

"No problem, Man. Like, how old are you?"

"15," grunted Taz, she looked around, _where was the quad?_ "Where are jou headed?"

"To the dorms and then to lunch, I'm starving!" The young recruit smiled broadly at her.

Taz realized that she was starving too. " Is the quad near there?" The boy managed to readjust his cap, "Yep! On the way, actually."

"Good, take me to the dorms," she ordered. The blonde boy cheerfully complied, chattering most of the way,"Oh, by the way my name's-"

"Hey," Taz interrupted, " What color are jour pins?" The boy looked confused, "What pins? You mean the pips?"

"Pips," echoed Taz.

"Yeah, man. Everyone starts at bronze 'nd most people stay there. Wooooah! Are yours silver?"

Taz had held her own pips out for inspection, "I guess. _It's strange, no?_" The boy scrunched his nose and said nothing for a moment, "It's really rare to have a silver pip, and you got yours on the _first day_. We should be friends!"

Taz snorted, "Sure."

They passed near the quad and there was Up, snoozing under the shade of an apple tree. "Whoa man! We should stay away from him, That's Lieutenant Up. He's like, legendary. I've heard that he has laser eyes and that he killed a Bird of Prey with his bare hands, and had his heart switched out for bolts of lightning and that like, Chuck Norris accepts him as an equal!"

Taz nearly broke a rib trying not to laugh and walked over to Up, "I'm pretty sure he does not have lightning bolts for a heart." She looked down at him, he was snoring gently and for a moment she felt a strange sort of fondness for him.

The blonde boy wasn't convinced, and he quickly sidled away, "I...uh that's cool. I'll see you later, Man. It was nice to meet you." Taz watched him sprint away across the court yard.

Taz kicked Up's leg and his leg shot out in response, tumbling Taz along with all of her things to the ground. "_Puta madre Up!_ _Que haces?"_ Taz pushed her bangs out of her face and began scrambling for her things. "Oops," he helped her gather her boxes and bags. He dimly remembered his first day, it had been raining. "Come on Taz, let's find your room and go to lunch afterwards."

"Where is everyone else? Where is Isa? I want to show you all something." Up took some of the boxes from her hands, "I...err... I'm not...Why are you asking me?"

Taz was too busy trying to balance her uniform box on her elbow to see Up's discomfort. "Because jou are friends?" The sarcasm dripped from her voice and Up was relieved. "Right. Well, let's just get going, we can knock at her door later."

Taz brightened, "Good idea!"

"It's a pretty big room," commented Up. "Yeah, for a Dead Goddamned match box!" Taz finished tucking her sheets into her bed. "The bed is comfy at least." She kneeled back, admiring her bed and glared at the other five beds, "I don't know how I'll survive five other roommates." _Si apenas podia con una hermana…_

"You'll manage," said Up, he walked over to her bed and collapsed onto it.

"UP! I just made that damn bed!" Taz dropped her elbow and weight onto his stomach. "Oof!" Up laughed and flipped her into the wall, holding her there with his knees, "I was jus' making sure that it _really_ was comfy! Anyway, what makes ya' think you can take me down now when you couldn't a week ago?"

Taz was mashed into the wall, scrambling to get free, "I know how to fight! Just jour fat ass gives jou the upper hand!" She tried to look angry but couldn't keep a straight face and burst out laughing. Up released her and rolled out of her bed, " Well, maybe I should train you. Come on. I bet you're starvin'."

Taz smirked, "_Si,_ maybe_."_

They were in the hallway, when a group of ensigns traipsed past them going in the opposite direction, they started whispering when they walked by them. Up shot them a glare and they instantly shut their mouths and ran for it. Taz watched their butts disappear around a corner, "Jou know, I've been hearing all day dat jou are scary. I don't see it."

"Me neither," a voice called out to them.

"Isa!" grinning, Taz ran to her but somberly stopped a few steps away. Isa could see the uncertainty in Taz's face and regretted being an ass to her.

"Hey, Taz," she smiled gently at the young girl, "What's hoppin'? Were you assigned today?"

Solemnly, Taz nodded. "Congratulations! That's great! So you start tomorrow?" Taz tipped her head to one side, "Are jou not mad anymore?" Isa sighed, "I wish you would choose another path, but...if this is what you _really_ want then I support you." Taz was relieved, "Thank you. And look!" Taz held out her pips to them.

"Zombie Christ!" Isa gasped and held one of the pips out to Up, "Did you know about this?" Mystified, Up took one of the silver pips and turned it over in his hand, "Must've been for saving your skin, Isa."

"Oh, it's well deserved then! They should've given you gold pips, _eh Up_?" Isa handed the pip back to Taz, Up plastered on a smile he hoped looked real on his face, "Ahaha, yeah..."

After lunch Taz said good bye to Up and Isa and headed back to her room. She was nervous about meeting her roommates but also thrilled at starting training tomorrow.

The room was boisterous, and there was that blonde boy from earlier! He was holding a see-though green violin, plucking a mournful tune from it, "Hey!" His face lit and he pointed at her with his bow-string, "That's her! Show them your pips, Man!" The rest of the WCO's crowded her, asking to look at her pips. Taz complied and they all chattered excitedly over them. "Alright, alright," he shoved through the others and slung an arm around Taz, "Now all you keep your mitts off my friend." They all grinned at them and Taz resisted the urge to punch the boy, "What's jour name _ese?_ Who told jou jou could touch me?"

"M'names Krayonder! What's yours?" Taz just glared at him and waited for him to answer, "Geez, sorry, Man." He withdrew his arm. "Ey!" They both turned, a wild haired ensign scolded Taz, "You be nice to Krayonder, you hear? What's your name?"

Taz rolled her eyes, "Taz. And he's an idiot. He thinks, Lt. Up has lightning bolts for a heart." The officer with platinum blonde pig-tails who was sitting on her bunk chuckled, "Krayonder will believe anything. And who knows, maybe he does!"

After leaving Taz at the dorm, Up and Isa walked companionably to Pryce's office. Many rangers were taking advantage of the good weather to be outside. "Are you really okay with Taz?" Up broke their silence. Isa sighed heavily, "No, not really but it's too late, she's signed her life away." Up scoffed, she was being dramatic, " She's going to be alright, Isa." Frostily, Isa responded, "I believe we've already had this conversation."

Up pulled his bandana low over his forehead, muttering.

"What was that? I didn't catch what you said," Isa glared at him.

He cleared his throat, "You're right, and that conversation ended weird enough." He could see Isa's face starting to turn pink, "Well, you looked like you needed the love." Up guffawed, "I've never had use for that, and I don't think I ever will." Grinding her teeth, Isa shot back, "One day you will."

A deep bell sounded throughout the rooms. Taz's eyes flew open and she seized her uniform box from under her bed, dashing out of the room to the communal showers. She pinned the pips to the bottom edge of her collar and squinted at herself in the mirror. The shirt was a little too baggy but the pants fit well enough when she rolled them up. She'd never been fond of obsessing over her appearance but the dress code was strict. She twisted her hair into a bun and used water to wipe back the stray curls. There was a knock on the door, "You in here Taz?"

"Krayonder?" _What did he want?_ "Go away! This is de girl's room!"

"D-do you want to walk over to the mess hall together for breakfast?"

Taz smirked and kicked open the bathroom door, it smashed into Krayonder. "Why? Are jou _scared?"_

He picked himself off the floor and handed Taz her schedule, "No! I just thought you'd be more comfortable going together."

Taz looked at her schedule briefly, it looked like a long day, "What's jour first duty?" Krayonder readjusted his cap, " The same as yours. I compared our schedules. We have work duty together but our training and school hours are flipped." They walked down the hallway together, "Dat cap is out of regulations, Krayonder. Jou'll get called on it."

Krayonder confidently flicked the brim of the cap, "I'm a rebel! They won't daaaare mess with me!" He karate chopped the air. Taz didn't know what to say to _that_ kind of stupidity so she just took her backpack from him and they headed outside.

Although she would've never admitted it to anyone, she was glad for Krayonder's presence when they entered the giant mess hall. It seated about a thousand people at a time. They quickly piled food onto their plates and found a table near the doors.

"Anything good today chill'uns?" Isa set her tray on the table next to Krayonder.

"Isa!" Taz punched Krayonder and he scooched over to allow room for the Lieutenant. But Isa was frowning, she pulled Taz in close and whispered, " You know I'm cool with you just calling me Isa, but here's different. We're your superiors. You have to address me as Lieutenant Isa, at least during duty." Scowling, Taz pulled away, " _Que idiotez!_" The food suddenly seemed less tasty as she finished it.

"Morning," Vasili curtly greeted them and took a chair in front of them. Still fuming, Taz finished her food and grabbed Krayonder's scruff, "Let's go _Krayonder_. We've got duty." Krayonder hurriedly handed Taz their bags before dumping their trays. Taz gave his bag back when they were near the door and Krayonder asked, "Do you know those Lieutenants?"

"Maybe," growled Taz, "But I guess they- Oof!"

Taz bounced off him and lay in a heap on the floor, "_Mira por donde caminas tarado!"_ She scrambled to her feet and looked into Up's scowling face, "Are you blaming _me?_ _Officer_ Taz?"

Krayonder backed into a wall, shivering. _Cobarde,_ thought Taz, "Jes! Jou're blocking de entire door!" Now everyone within earshot was staring at her in admiration and at Up in trepidation.

"Maybe you should make yourself scarce," Up growled at her. Taz growled back, "Maybe it would be easier if jou got out of my way." Up stepped aside and whispered loudly, "I'll see you later in training, _Officer._" A loud buzzing erupted around them; Taz felt someone yank her by the scruff and she stumbled back. Krayonder grabbed her hand and dragged her through the back exit. Taz was forced to stumble behind the taller boy. Outside of the mess hall Taz regained her balance and Krayonder yelled at her, "Are you crazy! _Loco? Loco_! You could've been killed!" Krayonder shook her by the shoulders.

"Aghh! Get off me you nut-case!" Taz shoved him and they stood there glaring at one another. "Sorry for saving you're skin! What the hell's wrong with you?" Krayonder angrily hit her with his baseball cap, "You realize they're our superiors? They could crush us under their thumbs!" He hit her once more for emphasis and she backed into the wall, "I guess we should get to the kitchens, then."

There was a motley score of people working the kitchens, and when the staff caught sight of them the yelling began.

"Eyyyy! We've got fresh meat!"

"Mmmm, nice and juicy. _That one_ looks good enough to eat!" Loud hoots and hollers followed them as they walked into the kitchens.

Taz elbowed Krayonder, "Careful Krayonder, dey want to eat jou." Krayonder snorted but gave her a small smile.

The kitchen staff continued heckling them, but tossed them some green aprons and welcomed them. Krayonder expertly knotted his with a fancy bow and Taz did a simple double knot. "What're we supposed to do here, Man?" Krayonder whispered to Taz but she just shrugged. A burly man with a bulbous nose approached them and bowed gallantly to both Taz and Krayonder. "I'm the head-cook for the entire GLEE system and I'm damn proud of my job. I won't have two rookies mucking up my kitchen. So you two are going to have to learn fast and good or you're getting the boot. If you don't like the way we do things here, you can leave this minute!" He glared at them through a single dark green eye but neither Taz nor Krayonder moved an inch. "Right then," scowled the head cook, "M'name's Silver. And you two are?"

"Krayonder!"

"Taz," scowled Taz back.

"Alright," Silver looked around, "Who wants the rookies?" A red-haired woman waved Krayonder over and Taz stood there until a thin, grey-eyed man approached Silver. "I need an assistant in the butchery." Silver nodded curtly, "That's good 'nough. G'on you." Silver nudged Taz toward the man. The man had an ugly scar across his face that began at his left ear, squiggled across his nose and ended at the corner of his right eye. He led her to the back of the kitchen, near the giant freezers, to where an unroast-beast lay on the counter. Even though it was quite dead it still dripped fresh blood onto the floor. Taz grimaced and stepped around the puddle with distaste. "I'm Pathos. It's a pleasure, Taz." She offered a curt nod, "Where'd you get that scar?"

The man smiled at her, "Near Prague." Pathos didn't offer more information than that He handed her a rolled leather packet, "Here's your own set of knives, don't misplace them. Unless you've got your own...?" Taz shook her head, then nodded and pulled out her father's knife. Pathos held out his hand for it and Taz reluctantly handed her knife over. He tutted, "First of all, you should hand them over like this. Blade first." He handed her the rolled leather packet and took her father's knife.

Taz snorted, "Okay."

Pathos gripped it tightly and whirled, throwing it at the opposite wall.

"Whoa!" Taz was impressed, the knife was embedded to the hilt in the hanging torso of a cow across the room. Taz trotted over to the knife and with difficulty pulled it out, she tried throwing it but it hit hilt first and clattered uselessly to the ground.

"Jou're gonna teach me how to do dat." She retrieved her knife again and after a quick wash in the sink tucked it away.

Pathos picked up a meat cleaver and began hacking away at one of the unroast-beast's hind legs. " I wasn't offering to teach you."

"I wasn't making a request. Jou are going to teach me," Taz picked up a smaller cleaver and attacked the other hind-leg. Pathos chuckled and ruffled her hair.

"Dead God!" Krayonder screeched at Taz's appearance when their shift was over. Annoyed, Taz huffed past him. "I know, I know. Let's just hurry. I need to wash my hair before class."

Krayonder waited outside of the bathroom with Taz's backpack while she rinsed her hair in the sink. He tried lounging outside of the bathroom with an air of suave...of cool...of macho-ness...of... "Uh- Oh." A group of giggling girls swooped past him and into the bathroom.

"_Pinché madre. Putas vacas ascerosas._ _Ay ay ay..."_ Taz scrubbed her long black hair in the sink, bits of bone and viscera plopping onto the counter. She scrunched her nose and pulled out a piece of coagulated blood. "_Dios Muerto,"_ she muttered, looking at the brown-black gob of old blood, _how had that gotten there?_ Satisfied with her hair she redid her it into a tight bun and scrubbed her face and neck and arms. "Eeeeww!" Taz flinched, the hair at her nape standing on end at the shrill voice. "Whaaat do you think you're doing?" Taz straightened, "I was washing my hair. Jou got a problem with dat?"

The girl popped her gum, "Uh yeah... uhhspecially when it's all grody! You've got bits of dead thing in the sink!" That was true; Taz took a paper towel and wiped the sink down. Once she'd checked her reflection in the mirror she tried to walk past the gaggle of girls but the leader, a dark-eyed beauty, stood in her way. "What I don't uhhnderstand is why such an itty-bitty is in an Officer's uniform." The girl stood there, teeth-flashing in an unkind smile with a single silver pip gleaming at her neck.

Taz socked her in the mouth.

She skid out of the bathroom and straight into Krayonder. He shoved her pack into her arms and pulled Taz away from the bathroom full of screeching girls.

Taz collapsed into her seat just as the bell rang and the instructor walked into the classroom. She'd made sure to see Krayonder to his classroom first; she had a sneaking suspicion that he was wont to skip class. She snuck a glance at her schedule: Literature, GLEE history, physics, -lunch-, math, writing, ethics. Although it was hours to lunch and she was already hungry, Taz relaxed. Being with Pathos in the kitchen had been unnerving, especially when he popped an eyeball between his fingers, squirting her with the juice. But here, in the classroom, she knew what was expected of her, she began scribbling in her notebook.

Taz'lation:

_Es muy extraño no lo crees_: It's strange, don't you think?

_Puta madre_: Fu-ing bitch

_Si apenas podía con Rubí_: I could barely stand Rubí

_Que idiotez!_: What idiocy!

_Mira por donde caminas tarado_: Look where you're stepping bonehead

_Pinché madre. Putas vacas ascerosas:_ mother fu-er. Disgusting bitch-cows


	9. Friendship

~o0o~

Even though physical training was printed onto her school schedule, Taz knew it was separate from school. She tucked in her white t-shirt that had her name spray painted on the front and adjusted her socks. Satisfied, she entered the gymnasium with a couple of other WCO's. "Take a lap ya' rookies!" a paunched and grey-faced man yelled as soon as they entered the room, "And welcome to your firs' day in hell!" Everyone responded with varying degrees of enthusiasm as they finished their warm up lap.

"GET INTO POSITION!" the instructor was screaming at her. Taz tried, she really did, but working four hours at the butchery had left her arms drained, she couldn't hold herself. Panting, Taz tried again and managed to lock her shaking elbows into place. The instructor squinted at her, "GOOD," He roared into her ear. "Everyone see this! She's not letting herself quit! Keep not quitin' Officer Taz!"

"SIR! YESSIR!" Taz screamed, her arms were crawling with pain. Her head swam but she refused to puke, Taz _hated_ puking. When her body gave up, when the bile rushed to the front of her throat Taz shuddered but still refused to give in.

The instructor was looking at the clock on the wall, muttering to himself, "3...2...1... Alright! You're all free to go!" The room was suddenly full of sighs, puking, and groaning. Taz released her position and let herself fall face first onto the ground. The sound of her classmates leaving grew louder and then subsided into nothing, she was left there lying on the mat alone. Taz knew she looked ridiculous, the rest of the gymnasium was full of Rangers, but her arms refused to move. Each tendon and blood vessel were clearly visible on her tanned olive skin.

"Hey, on yer feet."

Taz groaned, "_Que Quieres?"_ Up roughly pulled her upright, he eyed her for a minute and then punched her in the chest. Up looked around, it was nearly midnight, most of the other Rangers were gone. Taz didn't even whimper when she fell back onto her butt, but now that she was sitting upright she simply rolled forward onto her feet. Wearily she turned to face Up, he was sweaty from working out but still looked ready for a fight. Taz managed to curl her hands into a pathetic facsimile of a fist, "Jou still want to fight? _Vamos!"_

The remaining Rangers scurried out of the gymnasium, not wanting to see this fight. Taz had been lying on the WCO mat for half an hour. She looked exhausted. "What's wrong with your arms?" Up bent his knees into a ready stance. Taz bared her teeth at him, "I've been chopping up _cabrones_ like jou all day long!" Up grinned and rushed at her.

Taz couldn't help it, she flinched when he ran at her. But instead of knocking her down, he dove for her knees. Up slung her over his shoulder and she turned into a raging squirming worm. "Agghhh!" Taz tried punching Up but all she could manage were weak slaps. "Weakling!" teased Up, "One day of duty and you're a kitten!" She began punching his head, Up didn't even register the attack.

Sullenly, Taz slumped, _he is right_. Up carried her into an adjoining room, _She's too sore to even punch properly._ It was full of spongy tables, large medicine balls and four metal tubs. Up plopped her into a tub and turned on the faucet, "Left for hot and right for cold." He went and rummaged in what looked like a freezer and pulled out a giant bag of ice and poured it into Taz's tub. She cursed at him but didn't get out of the tub. "I recommend icing yourself first and then using the hot tap. I'll be out there." Up nodded to the gym. He stepped back into the gym to do his routine. He mused on the small girl, _There's no way she's going to make it, not alone._ Up kicked the bag and the chain broke.

About twenty minutes after he'd dropped her off, she reappeared, wearing someone's grey sweats. "Whose're those?" Taz shrugged, "_Quien sabe._ I found them in the dryer machine. My clothes're still wet." She watched him attack the punching bag, seamless transitions from one punch and kick to another, so quick that he was a blur. She sat there silently and then left, reappearing in her own uniform and swinging her arms, "Dat's a lot better." She stretched gingerly feeling every muscle in her upper back and arms protest. Up paused, "You should head on back. It's late." Taz nodded, "Thanks for showing me the tubs." She headed for the door.

"Uh, Taz?" Up was fiddling with the bandages on his wrists, "I didn't want you getting flak for being seen with me so I acted like an asshole." Taz almost smiled, "Thanks, Up. But I don't need jou to do that. If I want to be jour friend, _que se vallan a la quinta chingada_."

Up sighed, "I don't understand a damn-"

"Who cares if people know jou know me? Are jou embarrassed of me?" Up shook his head, "No, but won't you get teased? You _are_ a girl. Don't girls worry about-" he flapped his hand in the air, "their reputation?"

Now Taz broke out a smile, but it was hard and bitter, "My girl cousins worried about appearances. But I never did," she shrugged and pushed the door open, "Good night, Up."

"...Good night, Taz" the words tasted strange in his mouth. Taz smirked, "Jou can say sweet dreams, _idiota_. If 'good night' is _so_ difficult to say." Up laughed, " I was use to saying sweet dreams before the robots came...Sweet dreams, Taz." He turned his back to her and continued attacking the sand bag. Taz stood in the doorway, nonplussed at this confession, watching his back for a moment before closing the door behind her.

Taz made her way to the courtyard that was in the middle of the dorm complex and found Vasili with a brass telescope looking at the stars. "Good evening, Taz." Vasili nodded at her politely before pointedly bending down again over the eyepiece. Taz took the hint and went inside. Most of her roommates were still asleep, except for Krayonder and the girl with the blonde pig tails. Taz collapsed onto her bed and pulled out her homework. She could sleep later.

~o0o~

Yawning, Taz sat down on the long bench. "Long night?" Up was sitting in front of her, eating potatoes and reading a book that was propped on his knee. "A lot of reading and math is hard!"

"Up's really good at math!" Isa slid into the place next to Up and smiled at Taz brightly.

"I like math, but that doesn't mean it's any easier. You have to study hard. I can help if you need it." Vasili was clearing her place away and nudged Taz, "There's that boy making puppy eyes at you again." Taz almost gave herself whip lash, Isa smirked.

"What are jou talking about?"

"There, that blonde boy with the stupid cap," Vasili pointed at him. "Anyway, I'll see you all later. I'm getting reassigned today so there's a long meeting. Coming Isa?" Isa nodded, "Lemme finish m'food though!"

Taz searched until she saw Krayonder, he was making a pathetic face at her, she waved him over. "Dat's not a boy, it's Krayonder. He's a roommate. And my friend," Taz added as an afterthought. Isa felt Up relax almost imperceptibly, his jaw unclenched and she suppressed the urge to smile.

Isa leaned towards Up and whispered quietly, keeping an eye on Taz, "You have to tell her about being reassigned."

Up diffidently finished his apple juice, "I'm not getting reassigned. Pryce is reassembling his crew but he has to go through an investigation." Isa propped a hand on her hip. "So? Why aren't you getting reassigned?" "Because I want to remain on Pryce's crew, so I'm here on off-action duty until the investigation with Pryce is cleared."

Isa squinted at him suspiciously, "You've never done this before. Why not join another ship until Pryce is cleared, then jump back?" Up awkwardly dusted his sleeves and drawled, "Yeah well. I've been suggested by Pryce to remain here with him for a while." Up wished she'd go away and when she did, he found Taz and Krayonder talking, well to be fair, it was the boy who was chattering aimlessly while Taz read a worksheet. Her forehead was scrunched in concentration. Suddenly the boy fell silent, Taz looked at Krayonder and then at Up. "Krayonder, dis is Lieutenant Up. Lieutenant Up, this is Krayonder. Don't act like an idiot in front of him, okay Krayonder?" "Okay!" squeaked Krayonder and quickly filled his mouth with food.

Krayonder and Taz entered the kitchens. Craning his neck, Krayonder watched Pathos cleaning out intestines and knotting them.

"Doesn't he creep you out?" Krayonder threw his apron on. "No," Taz fumbled with her knot but managed. "He looks like an evil scientist bent on creating a Mothra-Godzilla hybrid! Arghgblurgh!" Krayonder pretended to be a monster. Taz sighed, "Krayonder, how did they let jou in the door of de Academy?" Grinning Krayonder posed with his biceps curled, "Because Man! They know no robot can handle this!"

Taz chuckled and walked to her station. Pathos waited patiently for her, "That boy is your friend?"

Taz nodded and started breaking apart some ribs. "Agh!" Some juice hit her in the face.

"He is very cheerful," observed Pathos, "He is good for you. He balances your anger ."

"_Que?_" Taz sputtered, nearly severing her finger.

"Safety!" growled Pathos, his scar contorting.

Taz readjusted her grip, "What do jou mean?"

Pathos looked at her knowingly, "You have come from a war torn home, correct?"

Stiffly, Taz nodded, "So what? Doesn't everyone?"

Pathos paused cutting apart a giant squid, he looked carefully at her, "Who is the lieutenant whom you speak with frequently?"

"Up? What about him? Does he _balance me out too?_" Taz sarcastically guessed, she threw the cleaver at a carcass across the room and was satisfied to see it hit its mark.

Pathos plucked the knife from the dead unroast beast hanging from the ceiling, "That was a good throw. Use your shoulder muscles too, not just you're arms. It adds power. Up is a different presence in your life." They worked for the rest of Taz's shift in silence.

A month passed and Taz was getting stronger, now she could throw some of her fellow classmates and Pathos informed her that her knife throwing was exquisite. "Your movements flow and are beautiful to watch," he offered her one of his lopsided smiles. Taz had scowled at that and tried to throw her knife like he did, with neck muscles tensed and jaw stuck out, and her knife fell uselessly to the ground. Cursing, Taz had retrieved it and Pathos halted her second attempt, "Don't fight yourself. There is enough out there working against you." Taz's face matched the color of the raw meat. Pathos smiled, "How's Up?"

Taz slumped a little, "He's going off on a mission and he won't tell me _where_, which is weird, right?" Pathos paused, "It is a little strange...Perhaps he is attempting to protect you, dear one." Taz scowled, "From what?" She angrily dumped some meat into a pot that was big enough to cook her. Pathos tipped his head to the side, "Taz, kindly go to the freezer and bring me the Garados we got in yesterday. Do _not_ mix it up with the dratini!"

"Sure," Taz stomped off.

The shuffling Pathos had heard earlier became louder.

"You heard 'im come in?" Silver stuck his head into the butchery.

Pathos glanced at Silver, "Yes. Let him in. It's about time we met, I think." Silver glanced at the freezer and disappeared. A moment later, Up turned the corner, Pathos straightened, tightly clutching a long and curved skinning knife in his left hand. He suspiciously eyed Up, "How can I assist you, Lieutenant Up?"

"Where is Officer Taz?"

"Under my supervision still."

"I need to speak with her, now," Up frowned.

Mildly, Pathos popped a raw chunk of meat into his mouth, "About what?"

"Personal matters," Up cut Pathos a glare, unsure why the man wasn't complying.

"Is she alright?" Pathos glanced at the papers in Up's hand.

"As far as I know," snapped Up, "Now where is she?"

There was something hard about the lieutenant, decided Pathos, like biting into tin-foil. Pathos put down his knife, "You're not the only one whose become fond of this girl. Be careful."

"Auf!" The air was knocked from his body, with difficulty Pathos drew in a ragged breath.

"What is that supposed to mean?" snarled Up, pinning Pathos to the bloody wall, his face was inches away. _If this man had-_

"Temper, temper," tutted Pathos, "I would never _dream_ of challenging you." Pathos could see the confusion crawl across Up's face and fought back a chuckle, _He's still young. So young._

"Up! _Que diablos_ do jou think jou're doing?" Taz reappeared, hefting half a Garados carcass on her hip. Pathos felt Up's fists clench tighter, but then release him.

"What's wrong with jou?" She threw the garados on the cutting board and rushed to Pathos, who waved her back.

Up's mouth was a hard line, "I need to talk with you, now." Surprised at his tone Taz looked at Pathos, "You are done for duty for today, at any rate. You may leave." He shooed her from the kitchen.

They stepped out of the kitchen , thorugh the mess hall and into the hallway. "You're in trouble, Taz," Up handed her the piece of paper. Taz skimmed it, "Assaulting a higher ranking Officer? I never did that!" Up handed her a wallet-sized picture of a dark-eyed beauty. "Okay, maybe I punched her, but it was just once! And it was a month ago!" Up shook his head, " This'll go on yer record. But the punishment isn't that bad, so don't contest it. But now you have to be careful, don't step a toe outta line anymore. Why'd you hit her?" Up observed Taz's neck turn a lovely pink color, "She called me... itty-bitty." Up couldn't contain himself, he burst out laughing, several Rangers that were nearby stopped to stare in amazement, now Taz's jaw line started flushing. "_Callate!_ Jou are making a scene, jou big lug! Is this the only reason why you wanted to talk? Or did you want to beat up my teacher too?"

Wiping his eyes, Up looked down at her, "No, and stay away from the workers. You know why they're here."

Taz nodded, "Yes, I'm not stupid. But I-"

Up interrupted her, "But nothin'. Anyway, I didn' come t' argue. You haven' been off base since you got here, right?" Taz shook her head, "No, it's barely been a month though."

"D'you want to go see a movie? I hear they remastered one of the old Karate Kid movies." Taz groaned, "It's not the old one with the kid in the stupid bandana is it?"

"No, no," assured Up, "It's the good one. With Jackie Chan!" Taz offered him a small smile, "Let's go then!"

Up bought popcorn for himself and Taz chose a red icee. "Good thing we got here early," whispered Taz into Up's ear," There's a lot of _personas_." The lights dimmed and Up whispered back, "Yeah, it's packed. You know, this movie might be totally awesome but I bet we could teach Jackie Chan a thing or two." Taz chuckled, "_Jou_ could. I haven't started combat training. It's still all strength and conditioning." Up shook his head in disbelief, "You know what? I'm going to start training you. GLEE standards have fallen really low, lately, what with the-"

"SHUSH! You love birds can coo together _after_ the movie."

Embarrassed, Taz and Up grinned at one another and fell silent.

"Alright ya' jarheads. One lap of cool down and ya'll free to go." Their instructor wiped his forehead on his sleeve. Huffing, the Officers easily finished their lap and then hit showers. Taz however didn't, she plopped herself onto the ground near the wall and did some cool-down stretches while she waited for Up.

Her back hit the mat with a resounding crash, but she was on her feet again, rushing at Up. "You can't just attack aimlessly!" Up was panting. Taz wasn't actually strong enough to hurt him yet but her ferocity had him dancing around the gym. He was trying to get Taz to direct her power. "Have a plan!" Taz lunged at him and Up neatly side-swiped her and punched her in the gut, sent her rolling. She lay only for a second before jumping to her feet, frustrated. "What de hell do jou mean? My plan is to hit jou!" She circled him, her head was throbbing with the exertion and her veins stood out clearly in her hands and arms.

"Okay..." Up lunged for her knees, Taz leapt sideways and he easily changed direction, head butting her in the air. He advanced on her, aiming kicks at her legs, Taz rolled to her knees to block but he clapped a hand to her ear, stunning her. He backed off, and allowed her to rest on the mat. "Was jour plan to knock my block sideways?" she woozily lifted her head and chuckled. "Ugh," Taz rolled onto her knees and stared at him balefully. Up chuckled, "Yes. And you're so green that I can basically guess what you're going to do. You need a plan more than I do. I can make stuff up as I go along because I have way more experience." Taz shook her head out slowly, "_Mas sabe el diablo por viejo que por mismo diablo,"_ and let herself fall back onto the mat.

Up sat down and contemplated Taz, "Huh?" She smiled without turning to look at him and tucked her arms underneath her head, "The devil knows so much because he is ancient, not because he is the devil." Up lay down too and propped his head on an elbow, "You calling me old, Taz?" She turned to face him and stroked an imaginary mustache, "Maybe." Up rolled his eyes, "Maybe I should take you to Mac to have you checked for a concussion."

"Is he here?"

"Yep. Just got in last night from Africa on a recon mission."

"I would like to go see him, last time I talked with him was before we arrived here on dat cruiser."

"Let's go then," Up started to roll to his feet but Taz shook her head. "Not now, it's late. Let's stay here. I can visit him tomorrow. I get Saturdays off anyway."

"Good idea."

They lay there next to one another on the sweaty mat, talking of different things. They ranged from Taz venting about her teachers to Up explaining the finer details of how starships were run, to wondering how one would sleep on a bed of fire without burning their ass. After a considerable silence, Up glanced at his watch, it read 2am. His jaw crackled as he yawned, "Come on Taz, it's awful late. Gotta get to bed." He twisted his head and saw she was asleep. Up grimaced jostled her, "I'm not carrying you to yer door. So wake up." She swatted him away, "I'm just going to sleep here then. 'S okay. Go on without me." Up stood and grabbed one of Taz's feet, "I don't think so." He started dragging her towards the door.

Taz'lation:

_que se vallan a la quinta chingada_.: they can go to the last corner of fucking hell


	10. Piercing

~o0o~

The next day there was no morning call to wake her, but her aching muscles took over the job. The sunlight spilling in kept sleep at bay, unconsciousness would not claim her. It had been a week since Up had shown her the rehab tubs but her muscles still protested the brutal workouts with him.

Taz suddenly craved to be home. The bed was disgusting, the sheets smelled of mold, the air was acrid. Involuntary shudders wracked through her; palming her father's knife, Taz clutched it in her hands, murmuring in Spanish. Unsheathing it, she ran her thumb along the ridged edge, wishing she could get home. Something fell with a loud thud and Taz flinched, her thumb slipped and spilled bright blood. Fascinated by the small rivulet, Taz huddled further into her blankets.

Taz clutched the knife to her chest, wishing her family back to life, willing them to piece themselves back together, dust off the blood and welcome her back home. The blanket was too heavy, it was choking, but Taz dind't want to see her roommates, didn't want to see the cramped blue room. Someone was screaming in Taz's memory, the pop and crunch of bones rumbled just behind her eyelids, she shut them tight. The screaming came closer, she could hear the desperate cries...

The knife bit deep, her blood pooled from between her fingers. A sheen of sweat covered Taz's face, the knife was stained and when she tried to wipe away the blood, a fresh wave spilled from her palm onto her knife. The screams that had frothed at her ears dimmed with the pain. Taz dug the knife deeper into her palm and the sounds of screams faded into nothing. There was just the fresh pain in her palm. It anchored her, the metal taste in her mouth dulled to a memory once again. The blood that trickled down onto her arm became darker and congealed into a black stain. Taz hugged her knife, and balled her palm tightly, relieved at escaping the waking nightmare. Before leaving her room Taz tied a bandage around her palm tightly, making sure it wouldn't slip.

Taz ran a couple of laps and was stretching by the time Up entered the gym. Only a few of the more dedicated Rangers were there on a Saturday afternoon and they cast curious glances at Taz. When Up went to join her they collectively raised their eyebrows but didn't say a word.

"_Que haremos hoy_?"

Up hefted a dummy stand to where Taz stood, "You stink at directing your energy towards one goal. You're all over the place. So we're going to start with something easier than fighting with me." Taz scowled but didn't object. Up turned the dummy to face her. "I figure this is about your level," he quipped.

They sparred for hours in the humid gymnasium. When Taz fell to her knees from exhaustion, Up left and brought back sandwiches. They sat on the floor companionably working their way through turkey on rye.

"Whose that?"

"Ensign Spyro."

"And that?"

"Commander Shepard."

"Her?"

"Ensign Juice"

Taz eyed him suspiciously, "I think jou're pulling my leg. Who the hell would name their kid Juice?" Up shrugged, "I think she's from farm planet. They name themselves." By the time they finished their food, everyone else had left the gym, they sat alone sipping their drinks. Up stood, "Ready to spar again?" Taz bounced to her feet, " _Vamos!_"

They circled one another for a few seconds before Taz attacked. Up stayed on the defensive for a while, simply blocking and measuring her tactics, _she's getting better_. Taz combined different kicks to distract him, then snapped her heel at his elbow, and she managed to knock him down with a well-placed punch and tackle. He was impressed, _not that I'd ever let her know that._ He lunged towards her, beginning his own attacks, watching Taz block him. Up held himself back, sending predictable combinations at her. The techniques Taz used were sloppy and inaccurate but when she attacked, Taz threw her full weight behind her punches. This lent her power but it left her wide open. "Be careful with your punches," cautioned Up, "You're vulnerable. And you're not strong enough to block my hits at such close range," he batted her forearm aside and sent her to the mat.

Immediately, Up saw her change, something he said made her angry and she began punching him twice as hard while managing to use her upper arms as shields. Her face contorted, eyes turned to slivers of fury and mouth curled into a snarl. He began punching harder too, matching her violent fury with his weight. Up turned his torso away from a kick, hooked his foot around her leg and sent her crashing to the floor, again. Roaring, Taz regained her feet and lunged for his head, they landed heavily on the mat. Up was bewildered by her rage but didn't question it. Hissing in anger, Taz punched Up's head repeatedly, he grappled for her arm but only managed to grab her hand. Taz thrashed away from him, but Up twisted her hand ripping off the bandage that wrapped her hand. She winced at the sweat that stung her palm.

"STOP!" Something in his voice made her pause. She lifted her eyes and shrunk away from him, he was staring at her hand. The injury was still raw and glowed red against her skin. Up lifted his eyes to hers and Taz had to force herself not to flinch from the intensity of his gaze. When he spoke, it was with the deadliness of a coiled mamba, "What happened to you hand?" Taz reclaimed her hand, shoulders dropping, "Oh. Dat? I was sharpening my knife and Krayonder decided it would be funny to throw a book at me," the lie turned her mouth into ash and mud. He shook his head slowly, trying to dislodge something, "Let me see it again." "No. It's just a cut. I was kicking jour ass. Let's keep going."

"Taz." The danger in his voice was unquestionable.

Taz held her hand out, afraid. He grasped her hand roughly and examined her palm and then her thumb. Taz nervously tried to reclaim her hand but Up gripped it tighter, "Funny thing about slicing your hand accidentally is that one side of the cut will be shallower than the rest because of the body's reflex to being injured."

A knot that had formed in Taz's throat fell ten stories to her stomach. "This one here on your thumb looks like an accident, one side is shallower. _This one_, however, looks to be on purpose." He squinted at her, and watched the blood drain from her face under his scrutiny. "Taz," he growled threateningly, "Tell me you didn't do this." He felt her tense but didn't try to pull away. When he tore his eyes away from her, Taz curled her hand into a fist and yanked it away. "So what? Jou're not anything to me. Jou weren't _there._" It connected squarely with the side of his head and sent him reeling.

Enraged at her response he loosed his fist against her head, sending her sprawling. "How dare you say that!" Up's fury made his southern accent come out thicker. Taz rolled to her feet and lunged at his head, teeth bared. She screamed at him and he yelled in her face. They fought ruthlessly, aiming to hurt one another. Now, Up didn't pull his punches and thick, black bruises blossomed across her face and arms.

He felt no remorse.

"Well you're a friend to _me_, you stupid girl. How'm I _not_supposed to care? And you think I don't know what happened to you?" he viciously kicked her legs out from under her and she skillfully rolled away, "You don't think I've been _in_ this Dead Goddamned war longer than you have lived_?_"

Taz was now on the defensive, she was quick to bob and weave but Up slowly beating her down. _I'll be damned if I let him beat me_, Taz faked him out with a punch and sent him stumbling with a round house kick. The flat sound of her foot making impact with his ribs was satisfying, "Jou haven't lost anyone jou love! Jou're an orphan!" "Dead Goddamned right I'm an orphan!" roared Up into her face, he discarded fighting fair and tackled her. "And you know what I did after I became an orphan? I took to the streets!" they struggled and Taz tried squirming away, Up pressed his shoulder into her sternum and Taz gasped for breath.

"Is THIS what you wanted to see?" He released her and she shot away from him, curled into a tight ball near the wall, bruised and bloody but watching as for the second time in his life, Up bared his arms. The scars weren't clearly defined to anyone who just happened to glance, but they were there. Broad and ugly, sectioning his arm into halves. Understanding dawned on Taz's face.

Up advanced towards her, "Is _this_ proof enough for you that I know?"

Up's face was pale, making his eyes gleam in the glaring fluorescent lights, "Are these the thanks I get for saving your skin and putting my reputation on the line? Is _this_ how you repay your family for their sacrifice? By tearing yourself to shreds?"

Whatever reaction Up was expecting from the fiery girl, it wasn't this.

She curled in on herself and began sobbing.

Taz felt cracked and hollow, _Up tiene razon_. She might've lost her entire world, but she had gained a new onw with people who, for some reason, cared about her. And she had her own life, would her parentslike to see that she'd turned to hurting herself when the world became too difficult?

Taz knew that her _mama_ would be disgusted with her behavior and her _papa_ would be heart broken. The tears were now real and they burned her; the emotions she'd ignored for the past month burst to the surface when Up took away the right to hurt herself. The pain came forth in clear, salty droplets. Taz dragged at her hair in a desperate attempt to lessen the pain. Instead of trying to deal with her thoughts, she'd shunted it down until it had burst forth like an infected pustule, Taz knew she didn't deserve anyone's pity or comfort.

Taz also knew Up would never forgive her, so she flinched when he approached her, expecting a blow to her head. Up said simply, "Cry, Taz," pulling her into his arms. And Taz clung to him, burying her face in his chest and weeping for what she had lost. Something shifted in Up, he realized that it was impossible _not_to care about the people who surrounded you, eventually they became friends. And this girl; this lost, red-eyed, tangle-headed, bad-tempered girl was unknowingly worming her way in. To where, Up had no clue, all he knew was that she broke his goddamned heart. At that moment, Up also clung to Taz desperately, it was exhausting being alone all the time. Up closed his eyes and rested his head on her shoulder.

So many good people were now gone, most whose names he'd forgotten, but their faces always came back to him at night. Nameless screaming faces, their eyes unseeing, ribs exposed to the air. He shuddered and pulled Taz in closer, her wracking sobs hadn't subsided; Up held Taz tightly so they wouldn't fly to pieces.

Up wasn't sure when he fell asleep. When he awoke, he quickly checked his watch; it was still early. Up sighed in relief and tried to move, only to realize that Taz was still curled in his arms. Up leaned against the wall and shimmied onto his feet, managing to keep a tight hold on her. The base was deserted, it was Sunday and everyone was asleep or still prowling the streets.

Instead of taking Taz to her room, Up walked to his own and tucked her into his bed; he pried her boots off and pulled the comforter to her chin. Only then did Up curl under a thick blanket on the small sofa and drift off to asleep.

"Hmff," Groggily, Taz hid her head from the bright sunlight coming in through the window, it took her a second to realize that the usual snuffling and farting from her roommates was absent. She shot out of the bed and was halfway across the strange room before she caught sight of Up snoring on the sofa, his mustache twitched and he rolled over, still asleep. Quietly, Taz crept to the bed and crawled back in. She wrapped the blankets around her, she could worry about what happened later, right now everything was peaceful and she could sleep.

The second time Taz awoke she could hear the muffled sound of a shower. When the bathroom door opened she covered her head and pretended to be asleep. Up opened and closed drawers while humming a song. It sounded familiar to Taz. "Hey! Wake up!" Something heavy and wet landed on her. She pushed the covers and towel to the side and rubbed her eyes, "What time is it?"

" 'Bout 8. Still early for a Sunday, you don't have duty today do you?" Taz shook her head. "That's good."

They stared at one another for a long time; Taz dropped her head into her hands. He sat down on the couch, "Taz-"

"Jou're right. I was stupid. It won't happen again." Up couldn't read her expression but there were shadows under her eyes. She looked weary. "I'm glad, but- Taz," he dragged a hand across his face, _why is this so goddamned difficult?,_"You ever feel that way again you come here right away and I promise to beat the living snot out of you." Up was relieved to see her chuckle, her eyes crinkling into slivers. "Is dat a promise?" she wiped her eyes, they were overbright. Up offered a hesitant smile, "I'm not the best therapist so you'll have to settle for sparring."

"_Gracias, Up,"_ the smile slipped from her face and she grew thoughtful. "How long ago?" She gestured towards his arms. He tipped his head to one side, " Oh, young enough to still think tamagotchis were cool. I was a _stupid_ boy. It was Pryce who stopped me."

"Jou knew Pryce before jou got here?" Taz left the bed and sat next to Up on the couch. "Pryce was stationed in a nearby state...and well, in a nutshell me and a couple of my mates were drunk when we ran into the Rangers. It wasn't pretty." Up was embarrassed at the memory but was pleased to see Taz manage a smile, "I'll bet."

They sat in companionable silence and Taz looked around, everything was sparse and neat; a thick folder lay on the walnut desk. Up followed her gaze, "Ah... I got that today. It's a new mission in a couple of days. Even though it's in the middle of the fighting it's just security for a politician, so don't worry."

Taz looked surprised, "Why would I worry? Are jou planning on going out dere and getting jourself killed?"

"Uh, no. I wasn't planning on it."

A grim smile formed on Taz's lips, "Dat's good because I need a rematch." Up snorted, "By the time you manage to throw me I'll be a Rear Admiral."

Each week slipped through Taz's fists like so much water; six months of duty with Pathos, studying for school, and sparring with Up. That was Taz's life: butchery, books, and bruises. Pathos began teaching her intricate throws, she advanced in her classes, and Up could no longer pretend that her punches didn't hurt.

The day of her graduation ceremony, Taz stepped out of the shower and saw a stranger with a mess of black hair and almost black eyes looking back at her quizzically from the mirror.

Taz'lation_:_

_Up tiene razon_ : Up is right


	11. Damn the Consequences

~o0o~

Taz dismissed the stranger in the mirror and braided her black hair. It was getting ridiculously long, she'd have to cut it soon. Taz glanced back at the stranger. There was something different, something she couldn't quite place. Her face had lost the baby fat that living in a comfortable home had given her. She flexed an arm, her _papa_ would be proud of the muscles she'd managed to build. Still, there was something off... she looked directly into the stranger's eyes. _Que ha cambiado?_ Taz wrapped the braid into a bun and hummed an old song. Her hair was a fond reminder of her old life; it was exactly like her mother's. For some reason it comforted her even more than knowing she had Isa and Up and Vasili. Taz smiled at the memory of an old argument between her and her mother. Taz straightened and made a stern face at the mirror, "_Hasta luego."_

Krayonder was playing an old Yankee tune on his violin when Taz returned to the room. "Hey, guess what Man?" Krayonder bounded to her.

"_Que?"_

"We're going to be promoted today!"

The Officers in the room rolled their eyes and only a couple hooted happily at that.

"Krayonder," chided the platinum tail girl, "You're going to ruin the promotion with all of your incessant screaming about it. Put a sock in it!"

Taz offered a grin at that and took out a slim green book.

"You gonna read us some more tales Taz?"

Taz thought about it, "I don't have de patience today. I'm too nervous."

The Officer who had asked nodded sympathetically, "I hope our new assignments don't separate us too much-" Everyone hooted at him, teasing his sentimentality.

Taz was desperately trying not to fall asleep. Her royal blue coat was stuffy and too big on her. She was sure that it was over 100 degrees that day and the sweat ran in places it shouldn't, she shifted in her seat. Her name was called, a pip was removed and she was seated again. Taz was glad that they didn't call her out for any awards_, that's all I need, more attention on me_. Taz flushed a furious shade of red at the memory of the meeting between her, Commander Pryce and the Admiral a few days ago; she knew it wasn't Pryce's fault, but she'd still been furious. _Estupidos_! She clasped the removed pip in her hands, nearly breaking it.

The admiral had bluntly asked how long she'd been romantically involved with Up. Taz had been so stunned by the accusation that all she had done was splutter. For a moment, Taz thought she'd heard incorrectly. The moment passed and when her vision returned, Taz swept all of the delicate glass curios off his desk. She flipped over the Rear Admiral's desk and kicked a chair to pieces, screaming, "How about you get your ass out of your head before accusing people of _cosas estupidas_?" And stormed out.

Pryce was left there, quite sure he busted his spleen from not laughing, _ass out of his head?_ He hadn't lifted a finger when Taz had flew into her rage, merely lifting an eyebrow when the Rear Admiral stood, dusting off bits of glass and wood from his adorned jacket and ribbons. "Well, You can't say you didn't warn me," sighed the Rear Admiral. Pryce didn't respond. Looking mournfully at the smashed curios, the Rear Admiral admitted, "I _would_ tell you who gave me this dubious information to me but, it was anonymous. Or else I'd let Taz deal with them herself."

At this, Pryce offered a tight smile, "With all due respect sir, You'd have a homicide on your hands. It is best that she not know." The Rear Admiral attempted to flip his desk back into place, but couldn't heft the heavy oak ensemble, he gave up.

"She wouldn't _actually_ kill them," he chuckled.

Pryce shook his head, "Sir. I truly, _truly_ hope that whoever sparked this mess does not come out to gloat to her."

The Rear Admiral glared at the Commander, "Are you serious?"

"You had better hope someone with a cool head is near her if something does occur." The Rear Admiral shrugged, "Well, Officer Taz has excelled in mostly everything, she has an excellent reputation as well. If she gets into one bad fight as a WCO it's of no consequence. She'd just get house arrest for a couple of days." Pryce looked uncertain at this answer and the Rear Admiral sighed, "I _assure_ you, Commander, that Officer Taz won't be thrown out of GLEE if this person baits her. No matter what Officer Taz might pull out of her ass."

Pryce nodded and swiftly left the room, before the older man could change his mind.

The ceremony was finally over and Taz loosened her shirt. She hurried over to the refreshments and choked down some disgusting lemonade. Clearly it was Silver's day off. Krayonder blathered something in her ear but she waved him off. With relief, she spotted Up strolling towards her. Attending GLEE personnel didn't wear their uniforms, "Jou look comfortable," grumbled Taz, tugging at her collar. Up chuckled and slung an arm around her shoulders, "But you look great in uniform. It suits you." Taz smiled and tried to drink more of the disgustingly sweet lemonade. Mac appeared grinning like a Cheshire cat and brandishing a camera. Taz groaned, "No _fotos_ Mac, _okay?_"

"Too late! I already got two," he flipped the screen and pulled forward two photos, one of Taz looking serious while being de-pipped and another of her looking sweaty and Krayonder bouncing around her. Mac snickered, "I personally like the second one." Taz scowled but was pleased at having them there. She tried introducing Krayonder to Mac but he was having none of it and pulled Taz away, declaring," We're going to get a class picture and you _are_ going to the dinner tonight. There's no getting out of it." Taz started to pull away but Mac pushed her towards Krayonder, "G'on Taz. Old men like us are no fun. 'Sides. We're gonna go drinking and you can't come." Up grinned at her and made a shooing motion. Resigned, Taz waved good-bye to them.

And a few days later Taz resumed her usual schedule; except she was one pip lighter and several advanced classes heavier. One particularly beautiful evening after a rainstorm left the air crisp and savory with the taste of wet dirt, Taz found herself beating an ensign to a bloody, boogery, piss-filled pulp. A crowd of jeering Rangers surrounded them and prevented escape. The ensign tried bucking Taz off but she pressed her knee further into his crotch and he whimpered loudly. Satisfied that the ensign wouldn't walk for at least two weeks, Taz kicked him in the stomach, she quietly surveyed the Rangers encircling them, "Next person who thinks dey can shoot off their mouth like dat is going to end up in a grave." She stalked off, a trail of blood marking her steps.

They caught her as she was entering the mess hall. Two stony-faced lieutenants escorted her to the Rear Admiral's office. Taz stood there sullenly, dripping onto the expensive marble floor, waiting for the Rear Admiral to arrive. When he did, the Rear Admiral barked for a medic to clean Taz's wounds " How badly are you injured?" Taz shrugged. "Please sit, Officer Taz." Taz shook her head, and at that moment a medic appeared, she was used to dealing with surly patients so Taz's behavior didn't faze her.

A wet cloth was gently applied to her face and hands, briskly the medic stood, "Sir, she's not injured."

"But the blood-"

"Not hers." The nurse gave a curt nod and departed**.**

Now Taz took a seat, "By when do I have to pack my things?" Taz dropped her head, rubbing her eyebrows, feeling a thousand years old.

"You don't. I'm keeping you here to cool your heels. You'll be confined to your room for a couple of days, but that's it."

Taz quickly glanced at the Rear Admiral and tried to hide her surprise, "Yes, sir."

The Rear Admiral hesitated, but then sat down and gravely considered the young Officer before him, "How old are you again?"

"Same age as when I entered. It's only been 8 months, sir."

The Rear Admiral almost smiled at her lip and glanced down at her file that lay on his desk, "Very well. I will be blunt with you."

Taz sat straighter, "Spit it out then... Sir."

"It's tradition to allow excelling personnel to quickly rise through the ranks. We're going to be promoting 5 Officers to the rank of ensign. Soon. If you excel in your classes and demonstrate exceptional prowess in the advanced trainings and physical endurance tests then you will be invited to compete for one of the spots." An image rose in Taz's mind, unbidden. It was of her and Up slashing and hacking their way through a horde of robotic Velociraptors to save some civilians or retrieve stolen data or- ...She frowned, a small crease forming in-between her eyes.

"But why tell _me_ sir?"

The Rear Admiral shrugged, "Because I think you can do it. You have so far. Dismissed." Taz stood and saluted her Rear Admiral crisply.

"Oh, and Officer?"

Taz turned, door knob in her hand, "Yes sir?"

"I would start doing extra trainings, now." Taz nodded and pulled the door closed behind her.

Usually, she awoke with the Officer bell, but the next morning, the sun was barely cresting when Taz was already knocking on Up's door. A disgruntled looking red head opened the door, she ducked under his arm and found Up snoring in bed. "WAKE UP, UP!" She pounced on him.

"Dead God!" Up awoke to a squirmy, screechy weight on him and he lashed out. But it punched him back and he recognized the voice calling him to rise and fucking shine. "Ugh," sat and held her shoulders, "What're you doing here? Is something wrong?"

Alarmed, Up scrambled out of bed.

"No, keep jour mustache on. But we have to go running. And then spar. Jou haven't taught me how to roundhouse kick properly yet. And then..." Up shot his roommate a questioning glance, but he shrugged and went back to bed.

"Wha-huh? Why? What's gotten into you?"

Taz felt... wary of telling Up why she needed training, she was sure he would disapprove. "I just want to do extra training. Jou're headed off to missions on different planets soon. Well, who'm I suppose to train with if jou're gone?" Up frowned, "I guess," Up pulled off his shirt. _Taco de ojo_, mused Taz before rolling her eyes at herself for acting like _una niña estupida_.

"Krayonder says jou had a tiger's muscles transplanted under jour skin." Up pulled on a short sleeve, grinning, "Aaactually, this what eight hours of working out every day does to you." He flexed and arm and Taz laughed, " I think Krayonder's right. No way anyone can work out like dat. I think jou cheated!"

Up pretended to be angry, "Why you little-!" He charged at her; laughing, Taz dodged him, running out the door.

Up was laughing so hard tears leaked out of his eyes, "What else?" he gasped, rolling on track. They had run ten miles and Up had pushed them to run it in 30 minutes. They were laying on the track, stretching, while Taz told Up the stories that Krayonder told her. Taz couldn't help but laugh with Up, his booming laugh was infectious. "He also says jou have lasers for eyes and dat jou eat eagles for breakfast." Up's laughter cut off abruptly, frowning slightly he said, "But that last part is true." Taz stared at him incredulously, eyebrows almost disappearing into her hairline. He hid a grin behind a yawn. The sun had risen properly now and they both lay on the track, tired but happy for a few moments. "Well, come on Taz. We've got a long way to go."

Taz knew that Up was going to leave soon when she found a packet of official looking papers on his desk. They were lounging in Up's room, Taz was trying to read and Up was busy putting together and pulling apart a zapper. Frustrated, Taz threw her book at the opposite wall and cursed under her breath. "What's wrong?" Up was concentrating on snapping some pins into place. "Jou are leaving for a long mission." Taz tried to keep her voice neutral. Up didn't pause, he twisted the barrel into place and clipped on the metal and plastic cover. He glanced at her and was viciously glad that he'd never been this close to anyone else. He steadied himself by taking the zapper apart again, then stopped. "I'm sorry, Taz. You know there's nothing I can do." She refused to look at him.

"Hey, look at me." She did. "It'll be alright. There's nothing we can do, so just relax."

"Maybe there's nothing _jou_ can do. But I will." Her face was set in mullish thought.

"Taz, if you stowaway you'll just get thrown out of the academy altogether." At this, Taz laughed. "Do jou think _que soy una estupida?_ I would not do dat." Puzzled, Up finished putting the zapper together again and tucked it under his bed. "What then? I'm going to do my duty, I have to get the job done." Casually, Taz leaned back into the sofa and gazed at him idly, "_Si?_ And what is jour job this time?" Up went and sat next to her on the couch, "It's far away. A group of colonists haven't been heard of in a long time. A starship was sent there a year ago and hasn't been heard of since. So GLEE decided to send more. There'll be several spread out over the course of a year." Taz felt her heart tighten, "Jou had better come back."

He gave her a crooked smile, "Cross my heart." Taz looked down at her hands and didn't say anything_._ Up elbowed Taz in the ribs, pulling a smile from her. Flipping the TV on, they settled down to watch an old Bruce Lee movie.

Up opened his eyes, _how long was I out?_, he was warm and realized Taz hadn't left. She was curled into a tight ball, wedged beside him. Up somehow managed to keep most of his limbs on the small couch. He wrapped an arm around Taz, pulling her in closer so he wouldn't fall to the floor. Wondering if it had always hurt this much to leave his friends he absentmindedly traced the line of her jaw, pushing her hair back. In sleep, Up could see the lines of grief and anger melt away from her face. Taz murmured something in her sleep and Up tilted his ear towards her mouth but couldn't make anything out. She draped an arm across him. It was still early, Up rested his head on her shoulder and went back to sleep.

After Up and Isa left, Taz threw her weight into her studies. She spent a lot of time in her professors' offices and in the GLEE library. The physical training came easily, after training with Up for more than seven months, she outstripped her classmates and had to spar with her teachers in order to keep improving. One day she walked into the kitchen and Pathos didn't speak a word to her while they alternated between throwing knives around and actually slicing meat for food. Only at the end of her shift did Pathos offer her a smile and said, " There's nothing more I can teach you, unless you decide to dedicate your life to the knives. I'll see you tomorrow." Taz was immensely pleased and affectionately punched him.

There was a sharp knock at the door and Krayonder stumbled out of bed. "Yes?" he blearily mumbled into the darkened hallway, itching his butt. "Officer Taz?" Krayonder confused, turned and called out her name. Taz lifted her head and saw the gleaming ribbons on the Ranger.

"It's now."

Taz's heart beat shot through the roof and sweat broke out on her skin. She began scrambling for her sweat pants but the Ranger stopped her, "No need. Equipment will be provided. Follow me. _Now_." Taz pushed past Krayonder, clad only in a tank top and her underwear to follow the Ranger.

A group of 20 WCO's stood in various stages of undress facing 20 ensigns in the gymnasium. There was a Commander and a Lieutenant standing with clipboards in the corner, watching them. The Commander stepped forward, "You all know why you're here, so no introductions are needed. The first part is hand-to-hand combat. Pair up with a Ranger and take a piece of the mat." Taz glared at the different ensigns and met the surly gaze an ensign, Taz judged him to be at about 6 foot and built like a Rancor. He gave a curt nod and they took a small space. Soon everyone was paired and the Lieutenant blew the whistle for them to start. When she fought Up, Taz never held herself back, but facing the ensign Taz allowed the well of anger and worry she had to flow from her heart to every nerve.

When she aimed her first kick at the ensign, there was no doubt in his mind that she was trying to kill him.

A shrill whistle broke her concentration, Taz released the ensign. As the blood rushed back, his face swirled from blue to pink then red. He shook her hand respectfully and the ensigns trooped out.

"Alright, if I call your name, you may go back to your dormitory." Taz dug her short nails into her palms as one-by-one, disappointed Officers left the gymnasium, until only 11 stood before the Commander and Lieutenant.

"You all have the academic and combat abilities to be an ensign. The fact that you are still standing here is an accomplishment few achieve. Now we will test your strength of will. Take one of these." She held out a box full of wristbands, "These will keep track of how many laps you do."

_Laps? _Taz looked at the Officer next to her, they shrugged at one another.

"Now, head off to the Southern course and begin. Start running and don't stop, once you _do_ stop, return my wristbands at the Commander's office and take the rest of the day off. Dismissed."

The Officers gave a reflexive salute. The Lieutenant and Commander left with small smirks crossing their faces. The Officers stood there a minute before Taz trotted out the door to the Southern assault course.

A few dusty sun rays reached the course but it was mostly cool, night air that Taz breathed in when she hit the track. The course was quite long, each lap was two kilometers studded with climbing walls, mud pits, crawling cages, hurdles, swinging ropes, and more.

The first few laps were a breeze, but no one sprinted.

On the twelfth lap one of the Officer's fell and struggled to get back onto her feet. The sun baked their skin raw.

Three hours later, two had dropped out. Grimly, Taz flung a leg over the climbing wall and dropped to the other side. She was plastered with mud, her legs felt leaden. Every single muscle hurt and strained, protesting against the abuse. She briefly considered puking, just to wet her mouth.

Four hours later, Taz's breath came in ragged bursts, her lungs burned like habanera sauce and most of her nails were gone. It was only her and five other Officers.

Near the mud pit Taz fell, lay there gasping and trembling; she passed a shaking hand across her eyes, wiping the mud off. It had been five hours total, school was in session. Three Officers silently trotted past her. One glanced at her sympathetically, a gold-eyed stranger. Struggling, Taz crawled forward and somehow managed to rise to her feet.

Another one gone. Collapsed near a dusty pit face first. Taz lost all feeling in her back, her muscles giving way from pain to numbness. _Respira...Respira..._

One puking guts out at the ropes course. And fainted.

Taz ignored the dancing worms in her vision and went through the motions of lifting one foot after the other.

It was now 3pm, seven hours. Taz wasn't sure how many were left, she was sprawled near the finish/start line of the course. The bile in her throat was coming up again and she spat out the sour juice. She had not been able to stand for the last half hour, but she grimly dragged herself forward. _One more lap, una mas, one more step, un poco mas, one more obstacle, uno mas..._

Taz struggled out from the sheets, there was a needle dripping clear liquid into her veins. Vasili was sitting in a straight-backed chair looking out of the window.

"Vasili?" Her tongue felt like fat sand paper.

"Taz! First of all, what the hell were you thinking?"

Taz bolted upright, yanking the IV drip out. "I have to go! Where are my clothes?" Vasili laughed, it sounded like a bark, "You mean your underwear?" Taz was wearing a dark blue hospital gown. "Well? Give them to me!"

"They're filthy!"

"I have to...go!" Taz furiously tied the gown so she was covered and limped out of the medibay. She stumbled through the hallways and everyone stared at her, snickering. Luckily, the medibay was near the Commander offices. She knocked loudly on the door and a surprised looking Commander opened it.

"Officer Taz!"

"Dat's me. Now let me in."

The Commander moved aside and Taz collapsed into one of the chairs. "Weren't you wearing clothes?" "I fainted. I was carried to the medic bay, I don't know."

Smirking, he sat down in his plush chair, "It's alright if you don't make it in. You are _very_ young."

Wordlessly, Taz handed over her bracelet, feeling faint. The Commander pulled out the memory chip in Taz's bracelet and popped it into the computer. He pulled the screen so both he and Taz could see it. After a moment, he closed both screens and leaned back into the chair. "You ran the course for seven hours?"

Taz groaned, disappointment flooding her, "Is dat all I managed?" The Commander rifled through some papers, and handed Taz one, "Here, the ceremony is tomorrow, pick up your new gear tonight. Tomorrow you'll receive your new room assignment. You have two days of leave and then you'll be assigned to a starship . We are currently inundated with new missions so be prepared to depart at any moment after your leave... Ensign Taz?"

The Commander leaned forward, Taz was asleep.

The next day, Taz sat reading on her bed, trying to ignore her new roommates when Krayonder entered the room and plopped himself onto her bed. For once, she was glad to see him, "_Que cuentas?"_

Krayonder looked troubled and refused to look at her, Taz sat on her heels and gripped his shoulder. He turned, a torn expression flooding his boyish face, "I know that you're itching to go out on a mission... " Krayonder gripped her arm and pulled her in, whispering, "Pryce told me to tell _you, _there's a starship heading there in-" he checked his watch, " a couple of hours. It's set to leave at 2100. Pryce is the Commander..." Taz searched for any sign of jest, but Krayonder was pale and drawn, "I don't think you should-" Taz thanked him and dashed out of the room.

She found Pryce pacing the hangar, a thick yellow packet clutched in his hands. "Pryce! Err... Commander." She skidded to a halt next to him, "I...uh..." she belatedly saluted him, "I'm going on the starship with jou. I'm going to be in jour crew."

Pryce gave her an exhausted smile and handed her a clipboard, "I was waiting for you. Sign here and report back by 2030 hours ."

The last of her things were hastily tucked into the duffel bag, all that remained were the knives... Now that she was an ensign, she wouldn't be doing house keeping duties.

The door that lead to the butchery creaked and Taz thought she was alone until she heard the familiar thunk-thunk of a double throw. Rounding the corner she saw Pathos tugging knives out of a saber-tooth moose. He seemed startled when she stepped into the butchery but when he caught sight of the leather roll of knives and the stripes on her uniform, his shoulders sagged.

"So, you're off?"

Mute, Taz hopped onto the counter and laid the leather roll next to her.

"Are you frightened?"

"No."

Pathos skeptically gazed at her. Taz shrugged, "I'm not afraid of dying. I'm...nervous... of my first mission."

"Ah," Pathos tucked the knives away. Taz took a breath," Are jou _ever_ going to tell me where dat ugly scar if from?" She bated her breath. Pathos traced the zig-zag of puckered skin across his cheek and nose, "It's a rather long, complicated story that's a little too ugly for you." He chucked her under the chin, "Maybe when you're older and have a few battles under your belt." Disappointed, Taz shrugged, she jumped down from the counter," When I come back jou are going to tell me this story. Whether jou like it or not."

An impish smile crossed his lips, and a strange gleam appeared in his eyes, "Oh really?"

Taz grinned, "Yes. See jou around."

"Godspeed," murmured Pathos.

~o0o~

Tazlations:

_Que ha cambiado?_: What's changed?

_Taco de ojo_ : collolqialism. means that someone is attractive

_Que cuentas?_: What's up?


	12. Sleight of Hand

Rewritten

~o0o~

After duty, Taz ran to the gym and claimed a punching bag. The equipment was a lot shoddier here than on main base on Earth, but the sand bags and pull up bars were sturdy enough for even a giant lion. She sat on the floor and wrapped her hands until she was satisfied she wouldn't get any broken bones today. The day's worries and frustrations melted away as she laid her punches on the sand bag.

"Pffff! Look at that little girl. Hey! Does your mommy know that you're here? Move aside so the big boys can use the equipment." The voice was really close, Taz placed a hand on the sand bag and it stopped swinging. She relaxed each muscle in her arms as she slowly turned, "My mother is dead." The burly Ranger sneered at her, "Good. Because then I'd have to ask her to shove you back up her smelly-"

Taz loosed a low snarl and threw herself into the Ranger. Elbowed him in the sternum, threw him over her back and crushed his jaw under her heel. He lunged to his feet but Taz kicked him in the ribs and was satisfied to hear a dull crack under the ball of her foot. It was over in four seconds. Breathing heavily, Taz took stepped forward, "Any of _jou_ have a problem?" She looked around at the gym, most of the Rangers looked impressed, the ensigns looked terrified. Someone stepped forward and Taz was ready to take a flying leap at them but it was only Up. He stepped over the mauled Ranger and said, "Spar with me." Relieved, Taz nodded and they headed to the wrestling mats.

"Ready to have your butt sent back to 2022?"

Taz bounced on her feet, "Get ready, _bandido,_ jou'll be sorry jou ever heard the name...Taz!" 

Laughing, Up circled her, "I'll be a monkey's uncle when that happens!"

"Ouch, I think jou bruised my spleen."

Up leaned against the wall, "Aw, don't be such a kitten. It's probably just a bit of hemorrhage." Taz snorted and gingerly twisted her torso around. The gym was deserted and they had the run of the place. The first couple of hours they spent sparring seriously, going at each other's throats and practicing their techniques. But after Up accidentally left a Taz sized dent in the gym's metal wall, they began horsing around with the equipment. "Ready?" Up twisted the heavy chain and spun slowly. "No-_MIERDA!_" Taz was thrown back.

"Shit." Up watched the fifty pound bag of sand hit Taz and explode, sending gritty dirt flying across the gym.

"_Pendejo!_ I told jou I wasn't ready!" Taz coughed, spitting and hawking sand out of her throat.

Up grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder, "Let's git!" Taz started laughing as she hung across his shouler, "_Que idiota!"_ Up grabbed their stuff and sprinted out of the gym.

Up spun around the first corner straight into Isa. With a pained yelp, Isa went down under them, Taz tried to catch herself by flinging her feet out, but only managed to kick Up low in the belly.

"Up!" Isa rolled slowly to her feet, wincing, "Taz?" She helped Taz to her feet, who was cursing under her breath.

"What're you guys doing?" Bemused, Isa touched Up's shoulder who shook his head and curled into a tight ball.

Taz picked their stuff off the floor and Isa placed a hand on Up's neck, "You okay?"

"Oh Dead God, Taz..." Up lay curled in on himself, clutching his belly. He writhed on the floor and tucked his head into the crook of his arm. Isa crouched near him and tried prying his arm away. Taz sat down, her back on the wall," Serves jou right for running away," she showed him her teeth, " Looks like jou'll have _huevos tiernitos_ for dinner." Up lifted his head and tried punching her but she easily swatted his hand away. Isa chuckled, "What the hell is going on?"

"It's Up's fault. He threw the sand bag when I wasn't even ready, and then it exploded."

Isa arched an eyebrow but didn't ask another question; she folded her legs underneath herself and sat next to Up. Taz noticed how Isa's hand lingered on Up's neck far longer than necessary. Up was too busy trying not to retch, knocking his head against the floor, to notice. Isa shook out her curls, "Well, while Up is incapacitated; how was your day Taz?"

Taz and Isa chatted while they waited for Up to recover from Taz's unfortunate low blow. Isa broached the subject of the play and Up was grateful that Taz pretended to hear of it for the first time. The urge to puke receded and he tried moving into a crouching position. "Feeling better?" Isa asked sympathetically. The sharp pain streaked through Up's left side and he quickly put his head down again, "Nope. Gods, Taz," his words were muffled against his arm, "Who the hell taught you to kick like that?" Taz laughed, "_No seas debilucho_, It's probably just a bit of hemorrhage_._"

"Fuck you..." groaned Up.

Isa laughed at this exchange, "How much longer are you going to be out for the count, Up?"

Up lifted his head and carefully uncurled himself from the floor, "I think I'm not dead." Isa stood, shaking out her skirt, "Well, my sweets, I have a Comm. meeting in five. Someone has to stay informed and keep you two out of death's grip." Isa clasped Taz's arm and kissed Up on the cheek. Up watched her leave, surprise crowding his face. Taz made kissy faces and noises at him, grinning widely. Up tried shuffling towards her on his knees, hands curled into fists. Laughing cruelly, Taz allowed him to catch her and land a punch.

It was getting dark and few, if any, people were wandering the hallways; Up took the liberty of propping his head on Taz's legs. "What makes jou think dat jou can just-"

"Taz," said Up quietly, "I'm still in a lot of pain. Shut it and I'll consider not flaying ya' alive. Ugh, I may never have children." Taz chuckled and leaned against the cool wall. Up thought that if he puked into her lap it would be sufficient revenge. Taz smoothed his hair back and propped a book open to read. Up was lulled by the rustle of turning pages, after a long stretch of quiet, Taz had an inkling that Up had fallen asleep. When he started snoring, Taz propped the book on the side of his head.

Up stretched and felt something fall away from his face. Startled he looked around and found Taz's amused expression staring back at him. He stretched again, "How long was I out?"

"Not dat long. Twenty minutes? It was like a recovery coma. I was reading off jour face and jou didn't even notice."

"Ya' were _what?_"

Taz picked her book from where it had fallen and stuffed it back into her bag. Up rolled onto his knees and gingerly stood, "Somethin' about ya' makes me sleepy. Every time. I end up fallin' asleep." Taz stuck out her lower lip and punched her hands together, "Maybe it's those concussions I give jou all de time."

Up smirked, "Uh-huh…"

Taz grinned suddenly, "How are jou and jour_…compadres?_" Up bit back a laugh, guessing at what she was saying.

"I'll live."

They continued ambling through the base, passing the Rec room, Up peeked his head into the noisy atmosphere, "Th' game's on!" Taz saw his face light up and she offered to take his stuff back. "Thanks, here's th' key code. Jus' ignore Vic if he's in there."

"Gotcha," Taz nimbly made her way to Up's room and was pleased to find it empty, she tossed their stuff into a corner and jumped onto Up's bed, pulling out the book she had been reading earlier.

"What are ya' still doing here?"

Taz screeched and threw the book, knocking Up in the shoulder. He picked it off the floor and glanced at the cover, "It?" Taz expelled the air from her lungs and flopped down on to the bed, relieved that it hadn't been a murderous clown. He made her scooch over and sat down next to her, "Why are ya' in my bed, anyway?" Taz wiggled upright, "Because Vic's smelled funny."

"Why would ya' - Never mind." Up idly flipped through a few pages of the book.

"How was de game?"

Up shook his head, "I don't wanna t' talk about it." He collapsed on the bed next to her and said dejectedly, "We got our asses handed to us by _the worst _team in the history. It was a massacre. I'm ashamed of what happened on that diamond today."

Taz rolled her eyes, "It's just a game. _Solo un juego._"

Up didn't even lift his head, "Get off of my bed you traitorous swine. Get out." Taz tried getting her book back but Up held it out of her reach.

Grinning, she threw her hands in the air and slung her back pack over her shoulder, "I'll see jou tomorrow. Don't dog ear my book!" Up waved but didn't say anything as she left. He kicked off his boots and propped his head down on the pillow Taz had been using. The silence washed over him like a balm, although he didn't feel tired at all. In fact, he felt he could go running right now. He debated the idea, but he was calm and the could feel sleep reaching its tendrils towards him.

The shrill beep of a call startled him awake. Groggily, he mashed his hand along the wall until it hit the phone button, "Yea'?"

"Lieutenant Up?_"_

"Yes'm."

"Report immediately to Hangar number 7. There is a large force of robots and an entire fleet of Birds of Prey headed towards the planet's capitol..." Up didn't hear the rest of the message as he scrambled into a clean uniform and rushed out of the door.

The hangar was a large beehive of people scrambling. He reported to Commander Short.

"Ma'am?"

"Sorry Lieutenant. You've been reassigned to a new starship. _El Principio._ Brand new line of ships, the leather still crackles when you sit on it."

"Who'm I under then?" He tried not to feel guilty about Commander Short's injury.

"Commander Pryce." She cracked a smile at him.

Pryce was already onboard, lounging in the Commander's chair, overseeing everyone and keeping tabs on everything. Up saluted him and Pryce nodded him towards a chair nearby. "Oh, and Lieutenant Up?" He turned around and by the merciless grin that was slapped on Pryce's thin face, Up knew he wouldn't like it. "Ensign Taz is on board so…no hissy fits." Up managed not to react and gave a terse nod. He heard Pryce laugh behind him and Up concentrated on his job.

~o0o~

Taz'lation

_Pendejo_: Think of the stupidest person you've ever met and multiply that by a cow. That's what a _pendejo_ is.

_huevos tiernitos_: It's a way of cooking eggs for breakfast. The egg stays soft and runny ifyaknowwhatImean.

_Compadres_: The boys, ifyaknowwhatImean.

_El Principio:_ The beginning. Foreshadowing anyone?

Author's Rant Space: Root and Mint aren't in the same division as Taz (the boys are flyboys). So their rank of captain is lower than it would be if they were captains in the combat division that all of the main characters (except Isa) are currently in. For Root and Mint, Captain is a general term equivalent to Ranger, it just means they can fly the larger starships without crashing them.


	13. Calm Before the Storm

rewritten

~o0o~

Vasili slammed into Up, throwing him back, they rolled into a crowd of confused robots and Rangers. Vasili slammed an elbow into his jaw trying to scramble to her feet, "My bad, Up." She pulled him upright and killed the robots around them. "No worries," Up shrugged. They lowered their visors to filter through the debris, Up walked around, helping Rangers to their feet and having them lower their visors. Vasili stood stock still, letting the lieutenant wander of while she kept an eye out for mobile hostiles. Vasili closed down communications with everyone except Isa, "What's going on?"

"Ten seconds, lieutenant…"

Vasili stood at Up's back, growling obscenities. Up tapped her helmet and then his, shrugging his shoulders before Vasili remembered to flip her radio on. "Sorry, Isa said ten sec-"

"Evacuate area immediately," Isa's voice buzzed in their ears, quiet and clipped. Up gave the sign to follow him. The Rangers in the vicinity formed messy ranks and they headed away from the edges of the city. "What's goin' on Isa?"

"A Bird of Prey just crash landed three hundred meters west of you, haul ass. Pryce is receiving orders as we speak. Keep radio open, chatter down." Vasili tapped her left shoulder twice and Up nodded. Up spoke to the ensigns and petty officers following him and Vasili, "Form ranks. High Alert." He didn't bother looking back to see if his orders were being followed, Up knew they were. Pryce's usually smooth voice was scratchy as he spoke through the radio, "Lieutenants, head North."

"Roger." "Yessir."

Pryce was waiting for them with Commander Short and a platoon of a hundred Rangers. Pryce nodded to them as Up and Vasili took their place, Up quickly glanced behind him but he didn't know what Taz's helmet looked like. Pryce said, "She's somewhere behind us, don't worry." He heard Vasili giggle through the radio. "I don' know what yer talkin' about." Up slapped the radio off except between himself and the Commanders. Commander Short ordered, "Simmer down boys. We've been given the go-ahead." Pryce nodded and started walking ahead. Vasili punched Up's shoulder and tapped his helmet impatiently. Up opened the radio, "What."

"Is it just me or are we headed _towards_ the Birds and the Bird of Prey?"

He licked his lips, "Maybe we're gonna go 'round them?" Up sincerely hoped so, two hundred Rangers were no chance for even fifty Birds especially not if the ship was functional. He hoped their own starships were hovering somewhere above them, just in case. Pryce spoke to the entire group, "There's a Bird of Prey full of Birds up ahead. To get to our starship we need to get through that street. We're ordered to bring in at least three specimens. _Do not_ fight alone. Repeat, _do not _fight alone unless you want your skull cracked open like an egg." Up forgot his radio was on and swore. "There a problem lieutenant?" Pryce snapped, actually turning his head. "No, sir," muttered Up. "Good," snarled Pryce. A wet wind reached them as they reached the outskirts of the city, an orange and green forest to their north. Vasili lifted her visor, "Told you."

Up tightened his grip on the zapper, "Yeah." Commander Short lifted her visor as well and said, "I'm not sure these are good orders, who gave them to you, Pryce?" Pryce kept his visor down, "It came from on high. Can't argue with them." Commander Short eyed the lieutenants, " I don't think so. I won't put my squad in danger just for some Squints to get a couple of mangled Bird bodies. Pryce nodded slowly, "As you will. Lead your group around. Mine will deal with the mission until the starships arrive. You go ahead once we attack the Birds, that'll give you cover."

Commander Short nodded, "Very well."

The Birds were still trying to pull themselves and their injured comrades from the Bird o Prey when the Rangers fell upon them. Up took advantage of a distracted Bird, he speared it with his zapper and shot through the screaming Bird at it's injured comrade. He kicked the corpse off his zapper and two other Birds fell on him. Vasili pushed the Birds back and hauled Up to his feet. "Isa says that there's a Bird Pod hovering nearby and that our nearest ship is a couple of klicks away. Five minutes," she looked grim. The sun was at its zenith and the outskirts of the city were a ruin.

Up readjusted his grip and gave Vasili a sidelong glance, "Half of us'll be gone by then."

Vasili grinned, "We should do something 'bout that."

Up agreed. Up lost track of himself. At one point he knew that his shoulder had been pulled of his socket, and it hung useless, until he body-slammed one of the creatures, managing to crack it back into place. The alien thrashed and squawked under his knee, Up gripped its helmeted head between his hands. With a violent twist he ripped its head off. It was left twitching and pouring blue blood onto the floor. "Auf!" He spat out a wad of dirt and scrambled onto his knees.

"Jou alright?"

_Taz_. "Yes," he grunted and she helped him to his feet. "How long have you been here?" She was relatively unharmed, but grimy. But there was no time to talk, a string of Birds and robots over took them.

She ducked and hit one of the aliens with the butt of her zapper before shooting it. As if brushing off a fly, the monster got onto its knees and scuttled away. "_Maldito sea._ How do jou kill these things?"

He lost sight of her for a moment. When she reappeared a large gash ran across her arm, she was swearing fluently. He grinned and tossed her a red band to tie it off. "I'll cover ya, tie off the bleeding." She crouched and used her teeth to tie off the red scrap of cloth to her arm.

The fray grew bloodier and Taz slipped on blood and guts. She fell to her knees and began blowing off the things' knee caps, it wasn't killing them but it certainly hindered them. A whirring blew above them; the shifting gears of hull guns echoed off the stone and glass buildings.

"Finally!"

"I'll say," Up grabbed her elbow and pulled her upright, "Good work."

The angular shadow of a turret-ship covered them. The aliens began stalking off, loping into different directions. "Catch them!" boomed Pryce, "GLEE wants them for the scientists!" Up raised his eyebrow at Pryce, but Pryce was busy barking orders elsewhere.

Up snorted, his drawl making it hard to understand him over the roar of battle and death, "Don' listen t' that, Taz. It's a stupid order." Taz grinned, "So we're suppose to ignore stupid orders?" Up shot an alien in the gut and it fluttered back, whining. "_Yes._ 'Specially suicide orders like this one. How would we even restrain them?" Taz shrugged, "Why would dese..._things_ go in with the robots?" They stood for a moment, catching their breath, a fresh wave of Rangers marched past them.

"Ya' don' know what they are?" Up asked incredulously, they fell back a bit and let the starship singe the enemy. They stood, grimy and bloody, watching the robots warily reform ranks further away. Up muttered under his breath, "We'll let the new platoon handle th' robots-"

"_Pues? _What are they?" Taz punched him, "Nevermind….Look! _Mira!_" A trio of the aliens flocked away from their comrades, escaping.

"Here! Runners! Follow'em!"

Up and Taz dashed, with a motley gang of other Rangers, after the retreating aliens.

They sprinted into the forest that hugged the city limits.

The forest turned out to be more of a jungle and Up kept getting caught in the weird orange vines while Taz and the smaller Rangers slipped through easily.

"Squirts," growled Up.

"Fatty_,"_ growled Taz, imitating his tone, "_Gordo."_

They zig-zagged through the undergrowth, the sounds of other Rangers fading away until Taz and Up found themselves standing quite alone in the very dark jungle. They noticed gooey blue stuff trailing on the ground. "C'mon."

"I wonder where they're headed. Fuck!"

Taz panted," They aren't stupid. They're headed _some where_. _Plan con ma__ñ__a._"

They emerged in a small clearing.

A blast of heat knocked them and the aliens to the floor. The creatures leapt to their scaly feet, hooting and chirping happily.

"Come on!" Taz gripped Up's the front of Up's jacket and dragged him before Up managed to get his feet underneath him. A small, angular Bird of Prey was hovering a meter from the ground. Up pushed Taz away, "Stay here!" Taz scrambled to her feet but was still trailing the older Ranger.

"Hah!" screamed Taz, "_Ya quisieras!" _She doubled her pace to reach Up.

He slung his zapper over his shoulder and leapt for the overlapping scales of the ship. _Yes!_ He managed to scramble onto the hull just as the ship engaged its main engines and lifted vertically. He looked down and saw a lonely figure pacing the floor like a caged tiger. _Oops_. Up shrugged it off and found better purchase on the Bird of Prey.

"_Pendejo! Se va a matar." _Taz took out her Linker and aimed it at the rapidly disappearing Bird of Prey. The Linker chirped a confirmation and Taz was satisfied to see a small blue square wriggle across the Linker's map screen. Taz enabled the Lead function and strapped the small round gadget to her belt. She began sprinting in the undergrowth, following the Linker's directions.

Taz ran parallel to the river, once she passed the Bird of Prey that hung, creaking and grumbling, over her head, she splashed into the cold river. She splashed back out and jogged next to the river, following its current. She spotted him from a mile off, dragging himself out of the river, clutching his zapper.

Up pressed a hand to his side, a slithering pain made him groan, _ Not broken, but almost. _He rested his head back. "Up!" Taz screamed as she sprinted towards him and two Birds splashed out of the river, their close-cut trenchcoats sopping wet, making them clumsy and slow.

"_LEVANTATE,_" screeched Taz.

Up somersaulted back, his ribs threatening to break. He heard zapper fire and Taz leapt over him, she tossed Up her knife as the second Bird attacked Up. She smashed the butt of her zapper against a Bird's face. It tackled her and the overwhelming smell of its putrid skin drowned out everything else. Taz shoved the zapper into it's neck and shot, bloody ropes of goo smacked her face. With its neck nearly unhinged it ripped her helmet off and raked its nails across Taz's face. She tried scrambling away, beating the Bird with the butt of her zapper. The Bird slammed a knee-joint into her face, dragged her to the river's edge and threw her in.

Up saw the Bird heft Taz onto its shoulder and throw her into the river.

"Taz!" _Shit._

The Birds chittered vengefully. With a grunt, Up sunk his fingers into the soft flesh underneath the jaw and twisted, a crackle vibrated under his fingers and the Bird screamed angrily. "Shut your pie hole!" grunted Up, he placed his boot on the Bird's chest and yanked to the left. The head ripped free and the body fell, shuddering and clutching itself. He ignored the second Bird and ran after Taz, tucking her knife into his belt. The second Bird rushed to her headless comrade, ignoring Up.

He ran ahead of Taz, her dark head dipping and reemerging with the currents. Slipping and tripping on slick rocks, Up managed to snag Taz's hand. The currents her strong and Taz struggled not to swallow any more water. Up let go of the rock and grabbed her shoulder, hauling her onto the rock. "_Puta Madre!"_ She placed her heels on the rock and pushed off, yanking Up into the river with her. The Bird landed a second later, hitting the rock with it's taloned heels, cracking the place where Up had been standing. "Dead Gawd," Up twisted around. The Bird was hissing and spitting, its carapaced neck twisting in anger.

Taz's hair tumbled from its usual strict bun and she angrily pushed it out of her face. Up grinned at her as she struggled to see through the dark mess. "Yer face is a mess," observed Up.

"Jou think?" Taz's lip was ripped open and purple bruises were beginning to form under both her eyes, her nose was crusted with blood. They held onto each other while the ruver dragged them down stream. "Didn't ya say there was a waterfall?"

"_Si,"_

"Fuck."

Taz tried grabbing onto a rock but came away with a long strip of moss. The spray of mist fogged their vision and the rumbling waterfall sounded closer. Swirling currents of mud and spray kept dragging them to the center of the river. The pebbled bottom disappeared from under Up's feet and he was dunked, for a few seconds. He reemerged to Taz laughing at him, she'd been treading water for a while. Now both of them struggled to stay above the cold currents.

"Ugh, this is _not_ the way I wanted to die," said Taz angrily.

Up spit water out, "We're not going to die Taz." Grinning, he grabbed her nose and pinched the bridge straight. Taz punched him and sneezed. "_Puto pendejo!"_

The edge of the river loomed near them, the sight was spectacular, "Just take in the great view!" laughed Up. He managed to get a hold of Taz and hugged her tightly, tangling his hands in her long hair, "Your hair is pretty."

"_Not _de time, Up. But _gracias,_ I think so too_._"

Grimly, Taz tightened her grip on him as they crested over the lip of the river. It _was _beautiful. The land curved away in an explosion of colors not seen on earth and strange flying creatures sang in the cliffs. Up whooped and yelled happily; Taz clung to him, hoping not to be dashed on the rocks below.

The water curled over her head, as if claiming her. _Not today,_ thought Taz,she kicked towards the surface. Her lips crested the surface of the water, allowing her sweet air, before she was yanked back down towards the muddy depths.

She twisted around and her arm got caught in the roots. _Maldicion_, thought Taz sourly. She reached for her knife, it was gone_. _She kicked again for the surface and managed another shallow breath before the flexible roots pulled her back down. She lifted her free arm and felt around. It was her hair! Her hair was tangled in the springy roots, and her arm too. Taz kicked to the surface, stuck her forearm out of the water and waved it frantically.

Back under; she tried ripping her hair out but she only managed to get more tangled, now she could feel the roots brushing her nape.

_Shit! Mierda!_

She kicked to the surface for air, but she couldn't even get her nose to breach the surface. _No no no no!_ A growl in her chest, Taz pushed off again and managed to shove her hand above the water. When she rebounded back, the roots caught her legs. Taz almost screamed in frustration. Her lungs were stinging for air. Again, Taz tried pushing off but only managed to stick several fingers out. Calloused hands tightened on her arm and yanked her cruelly. _Ouch_, thought Taz dimly. Suddenly, she saw Up in the opaque river water. The question in his eyes faded when he saw her tangled in the roots. He pulled out her knife and started sawing away at the roots ensnaring her legs. Taz kicked away from him and broke the surface for half a second. A little bit of air, but not enough.

Up surfaced for air, Taz's shadow dark and frantic underneath him. He took several deep breaths and dove again.

Taz saw Up approach her. She felt slightly more calm, but her lungs were burning and pressing against her ribs for fresh air. Up gripped her arm and sawed it free. He saw Taz's face turning as blue as the water. He broke for the surface and took in a giant breath of air then dove again, _She's gonna kill me._

He gripped her jaw and pressed his lips to her mouth.

Taz thrashed away from him, anger in her eyes. He gripped her arm tightly, pointed to the surface and then to himself and then to her.

Taz understood and nodded.

Up repeated the gesture and Taz's grateful lungs received the air they needed, she yanked at his hair. Desperate for more air. Up pushed her away and went back to sawing at her arm, managing to free her rather quickly. Taz leapt for the surface; but she rebounded and somehow managed to get just as tangled as before. Crossly, Up breached the surface and swore loudly. Taz had been under for five minutes. He took in a deep breath and dove again. Up pressed his lips against Taz and Taz clung to him for a long time. She then broke away and made a sawing motion at her head. Up nodded and carefully began cutting the roots away from her hair. He didn't want to cut the hair when he knew it was Taz's pride and joy. Taz punched him weakly and snatched the knife from him. She began hacking at her own hair, long strands were swept down river along.

Up kicked to the surface and took several deep breaths before returning; he snatched the knife from her and pressed his lips to her again, giving her air. He then placed his fingers on her scalp and smoothly ran the knife through her hair, scraping his knuckles. After that it was only two or three more slices and her arm and legs were free that Taz swam to the surface. She clung to the river-tree's trunk. He swam over to her and ferried her to the river's shore.

"Let's _never_ do that again."

"What? Jump a waterfall? Almost drown? Or did ya' mean kissing?" His grin was wicked, the adrenaline was still making his head spin.

"Any of it!" coughed Taz.

He chuckled and deposited her on shore.

He was relieved she wasn't upset about her hair. She lay there coughing and spitting, "I will _never_ underestimate breathing again."

"Come on Taz, let's get under cover. There's still a Bird up there."

"_Bueno."_

They trudged on through the undergrowth. Up glanced at her. She was running her hands through her ruined hair. It hung in a strange fashion, the front was longer and she was almost bald at her nape. Taz noticed his scrutiny and smiled weakly, "I look like a night troll." Up snorted, "You're a little girl. All little girls _are_ night trolls."

Taz punched him, "I am a woman. I had my _quince_ months and months ago."

"How does that make you a woman?" inquired Up, honestly curious.

Taz's lips twitched, considering giving him a smart-ass response, but she relented, "It means I was presented to society and that I was ready to be _prometida."_

"To be _what_?" They ducked into a small overhang and sat in its shade, trying to catch their breath. He stopped her response. They heard the wailing screech of a Bird as it passed nearby and before fading.

"I'm trying to remember the word in English, Um..." she waved her left hand in the air impatiently. "_Ay, como se dice?..._ Betrothed!" She grinned, pleased at having remembered the word.

"And were you?"

"Well, they had a nice family picked out. A suitable boy that I'd make a great match with," she shrugged, disinterested in the conversation.

Astounded, Up watched her carefully, " I can't imagine you being married and what-not. Did your mother do the same thing?"

Now it was Taz's turn to look surprised, "Well, of course. Dat's why I had so many brothers and cousins. She married very young, as did my _nana_. But no, I can't imagine myself married to anyone either."

Up gave her a toothy smile, "You'd probably poison him."

Taz sighed, "Or stab him."

"Bury him alive."

"Push him over a water fall."

"Drown him," suggested Up.

Taz grimaced, "No, I could never drown anyone. Not after dat." She gestured towards the river. Probably set him on fire."

Up got to his feet, "Well, let's go. We can dry off while we walk."

They swung back near the river and followed it towards the swampland. Taz tried working the Linker but it only spazzed out; disgusted, Taz shoved it back into her pocket, hoping it would dry out soon.

By nightfall they were treading through the middle of the swamplands. The swamplands were muddy and smelly but they'd managed to stay relatively unmuddy.

The wailing screech of the Bird of Prey sounded nearby.

"It's tracking us."

Taz wasn't convinced, "How would it do that? We've stuck to the shadows and jou said they don't have a good sense of smell."

Up shrugged, irritated, "How should I know? Shut up, it'll hear us."

Taz opened her mouth to tell _him_ to shut up when a shadow fell over them. "Run!" whispered Up. They slid through the forest of slimy trees, Up tripped and got a mouthful of slimy moss, "Yech."

But the Bird gained on them, large, clawed talons giving easy traction on the low-slung trees. Taz skid to a halt when the Bird tackled Up, lashing his back open. Taz tossed her knife at him and he wedged it into the Bird's eye lenses. Taz leapt at its back, crushing bones under her kick. Alone, the Bird would've made short work of them, but together they managed to overpower the Bird and soon it lay dead before them. Taz tried not to puke at the sight and smell, she placed her hands on her knees, breathing deeply. With contempt, Up tossed the Bird head far away, "Don' go pukin', Ensign, "he slowly did a complete turn. "…Where are we?"

Taz took in her surroundings, "Lost."

"No shit, Einstein," snapped Up.

"_Jou_ asked!" Taz yanked out the Linker and shook it out, the screen flickered to life but quickly spazzed out again. She jammed it back into her pocket.

Up sighed, "Well, we might as well sleep here and find the river in the morning."

"But I'm covered in mud and Bird insides," complained Taz.

"Good. We'll keep warmer that way. Stop complainin'." Up found a tree with wide enough roots and pillowed his head on a knobbly bit.

Taz glowered at him, "_Callate._ Jou're getting on my nerves, _ese_. Ugh, I _hate_ sleeping outside…" She kicked the Bird's decapitated corpse.

Taz curled on a root near Up, managing to prop her feet on a neighboring root. She fell into a light sleep.


	14. The River

They woke to a damp but less foggy swamp, they were also less irritated with one another. Up yawned and stretched, back crackling, he had dreamt something strange. He rubbed his palm across his lips, _something about black snakes_.

"Hey! Wake up short stuff!"

He jumped to the ground and it squelched under his heels. Taz groaned as she sat, bits of mud crackling and flaking off her. He chuckled and reached over, peeling a long strip of mud from her neck. "I bet people would pay a ton of space bucks to have this type of mud bath," he peeled off mud from his forearms. Taz knelt to retie her boots, "Would jou pay?"

"Fer a mud bath? I guess…maybe." Up realized his mistake as soon as Taz stood, holding two fistfuls of sticky mud, "Why pay when I can give jou one for free?"

"Don' even think 'bout it!" Taz grinned and did it anyway. Both handfuls of mud hit Up in the face. By the time Up scraped the mud from his eyes, Taz was sprinting away, laughing like mad. She jumped from behind a tree and pegged him with slimy strips of moss.

"Asshole!" Up spat out chunks of decomposing greenery and managed to catch her on the bank of a sluggish river.

They went down into the stagnant waters, Up smeared rotten-smelling gunk into her face while Taz punched his ribs. They emerged caked in mud and leeches, laughing.

By midmorning they reached the marshlands and they were far, far muddier than they had started out that morning. Taz wasn't speaking to him again and Up had to quell his urge to belt out old songs. She'd already threatened him with her knife once, Up wouldn't put it past her to stab him in a fit of rage.

Up was the first to notice the ground firming under their feet; he shoved Taz into the still muddy ground, running ahead. Snarling, Taz pulled out her knife and chased him. The swampland gave way to marshland. Giant boulders the size of cars crowded the ground. Yellow tufts of supple grass choked the space between boulders. He looked back and saw Taz was gaining on him. He jumped onto a large, grey boulder. He could hear the gurgle of water below him and he spied the beginning of a green river ahead.

"Come on _itty-bitty._ You're such a slow poke!" He heard a screech of rage behind him.. Having survived so much in the past two days had Up feeling reckless. Birds of Prey, the Birds themselves _and_ a giant fucking waterfall. It was staggering. He splashed into the light green water happily and he struck out for the middle of the river.

"Oh!" As soon as she was in the water, Taz forgot her anger. Up swam back out and clambered onto one of the giant boulders, the water sluicing off him in grimy rivulets. Taz splashed into the river and dove in. Up tipped his head back and took in the warm sunlight. When she resurfaced, Taz peeled off her boots and socks, tossing her belt next. When he looked back down, Taz's jacket and pants had joined her boots and he hurriedly looked away.

"You should warn a body if you're goin' t' strip!"

Taz laughed and he heard a loud splash. "Go away den! _Vamos!_ Git!" She tried copying his drawl and failed miserably. Up complied, he turned his back to her and went to find his own part of the river to bathe in.

When he returned, Up made sure to keep his eyes on the ground and called out, "You decent?"

"I always try to be polite!" He heard splashing and swimming.

"No, I mean are you dressed."

"Oh, um... Jou better stay on dat side of the grass."

Up retreated to where a large screen of grass separated them. "Why aren't ya' dressed yet? I already washed my clothes and everythin'."

"Oh, my clothes are already washed. I'm just swimming."

"Well, get out. We need to keep movin'."

"No way! This river is nice. Let's stay here and swim for the afternoon." Her voice carried easily in the clear air.

He sighed, "Are you wearing your under things at least?"

He heard a whoop and a large splash. "Yes!"

Up carefully made his way barefoot until he saw where her clothes neatly laid out on a boulder, drying.

She surfaced near a tree, smiling widely. Up found himself smiling back, "So you like swimming, huh?" He tossed his boots down and sat on the warm rock.

"Yep." She clambered the tree again, edged to the end of the branch and jumped with a yell. She was clad in her underwear, but it might've been swimming things they were so brightly colored. Up laughed at her.

She emerged, and spit a little fountain of water, "Come on jou party pooper! Jou _old fart_. Have some fun!" She laughed, "Jour clothes are never going to get dry like dat anyway. Come and swim!"

Up considered it, "Wait...Did you just call me an _old fart_?" Taz shrieked as he jumped in fully clothed.

Up was peeling off his clothes when Taz crouched by the edge of the river, using it as a mirror. Knife in hand she began sawing her hair into something resembling a decent haircut. Finally she kneeled back and tried tying it into a tail to keep the long bangs out of her face. Squinting at her rippling reflection, she scowled as the small locks of hair slipped out, "Bring me dat red bandana, _si_?" Up went to where her clothes were drying and found the red band, dried to a crisp.

"_Gracias,"_ She tied it across her forehead.

Taz touched the knot in the back and leaned back over the lip of the boulder into the water.

Taz smiled, " It looks good!"

"Of course it does, it was_ my _bandana first."

Taz smirked and rather than respond, splashed him.

The sun was setting when Taz went to flip their clothes over. "See?" she said smugly," Mine are almost dry already."

"Yeah yeah. Git over here already 'nd eat yer squid-fish," drawled Up.

Taz picked her way over and settled down comfortably near the small grass fire Up had managed to ignite. She poked at the small grey, tentacled thing. It was burnt to a crisp on the outside but the inside was an appetizing brown color. Up had single-handedly caught the things and managed to cook them without burning some of his fingers.

Up tore right into the thing but Taz was hesitant to eat it. She discovered it had a sweet nutty flavor and hungrily ate the rest of it. They kept catching the small squid-fish until a small graveyard of bright red bones were drying by the fire. Up curiously held one to the fire light and it glowed, almost transparent. He cracked it in half and sucked out the marrow but spat it back out. "The inside's sour, don't eat it."

"I wasn't going to ," Taz propped some wood over their fire and laid down on the boulder. "Jou take first watch since I almost drowned yesterday."

"You should take first watch because I saved you."

Taz sighed, "Oh alright. I was going to go for a swim anyway." Up flopped onto his stomach and buried his head into the crook of his arm. Taz went to check on their clothes. A wind had thrown Up's pants onto a small clump of grass and Taz shook them out. She picked her way to the river's edge and glancing back to make sure Up wasn't looking, shimmied out of her underwear.

The water was icy and made her bones ache, but she loved the clean water and swam a few laps before laying out on a rock to dry. By the time she went back, Up was snoring, his mustache twitching. She sat down, legs crossed and gazed at the stars.

Up stretched and rubbed his scarred eye, it still ached at times. Taz was fast asleep, her back to the fire, her shoulder lost in darkness, brown skin washed out to a pale peach by the dull firelight. Up sprinkled some grass on the dying flames and carefully added the rest of the dry logs. He rested his arms on his knees, yawning. Deciding that it was unlikely they'd be attacked by anything bigger than a mosquito, he lay back down and listened to the marshland. After a while he turned on his side, facing the flames, almost dozing. Taz mumbled something and shivered, turning to face their fire. Briefly Up contemplated her, she'd come much farther than he thought she would. _Well she wasn't ever alone, she always had me, Isa, Vasili, Pryce, Mac, that candy-ass, and I guess the butcher._

Up realized that out of all of them he was her closest friend. Then he frowned, _Is she my closest friend?_ _No_, thought Up uneasily,_ It's Pryce. He got me out of the streets._ Taz sighed loudly and murmured something again._ But it wasn't Pryce who kept me from going crazy, the bastard doesn't even spar with me anymore. _For some reason, he recalled the night when he saw Taz's welted hand, _I've helped her out too,_ he winced, _but_ _it's not like I can still be mad at her for that._ _Pot calling the kettle black._ Now he couldn't sleep, _Pryce is a brilliant Commander but he's... he's not..._ Up couldn't articulate what Pryce was but he felt dread settle in his stomach as he remembered Pryce's last orders. Those had been an idiot's orders, blindly given and blindly received. He glanced at Taz and laughed at himself. _A fifteen-year-old is your closest friend._

Taz opened her eyes, "What're jou laughing at?" Her accent was heavier as she tried to wake up.

"You," said Up, feeling reckless again," Yer underwear is a ridiculous color."

Instead of lobbing a rock or her knife at him, she grinned, "Well, I always have to wear the same thing every day. So I might as well wear _something_ I like, even if only I see it."

"That's true," conceded Up.

"And anyway," said Taz, casting a critical eye over his boxers, "Who de hell still wears plaid?"

Up cracked a smile, "They were a gift! I migh' start copying you though. I'll buy really obnoxious socks 'nd boxers."

Taz chuckled, "Jour insults are not gonna get me mad."

The next morning they trudged for only half an hour before stumbling upon a small town where they hitched a ride back to a large city and where GLEE picked them up.

Taz'lation:

_Maldito sea_: Goddamit

_Maldicion_,: Damn

_Ay, como se dice?:_ How do you say it?


End file.
